Have you been feeling the pull of homeownership?  Has that little voice in your head been whispering “Wouldn’t it be nice to have a garage for my car or not to know my neighbor's bathroom schedule?” Before you go out and get yourself a real estate agent, I suggest you ask yourself a few more questions first.  Start with “Other than comfort in my living space, are there any other good reasons for buying a home?” I’ll admit the first reason my husband and I thought of buying a home was to make money, as an investment.  However, we did stop and take inventory after that.  We made sure we were prepared for the financial burden of taking on a mortgage and keeping up a home.  I will discuss making sure you’re prepared to buy a home in my next blog. Right now I am addressing what the good reasons to buy one are, the pros on your ‘Rachael or Julie’ list. Sorry, this just brought to my mind that Friends episode.   So, number 1 on my list of top reasons to buy a home is Appreciation.  According to the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA), the average rate of home appreciation over the last 22 years was 4.3%.  22 years would obviously include the housing crash in 2008 when home prices fell nearly 30%, yet homes still ended up gaining on average 4.3% per year!  That’s a pretty solid investment.   Of course, not every home in every location will gain this.  I am not discussing outliers.  Equity is number 2 on my list.  When looking at buying versus renting we have to account for the fact that rent is money you will never see again.  Not even a small percentage of rent comes back to you when you move out of a rental or the longer you stay in the same rental.  Number 3, tax write-offs.  Yes, you can deduct your mortgage interest and your property taxes.  Some states may allow a small deduction for renters but in comparison owning a home offers better tax breaks.  Number 4, one of my favorites, a home can be an inflation hedge.  At times when inflation is causing rents to rise, homeowners continue to pay the same amount as when they first took out their mortgage.  Homeowners also get the option during times of lower rates to refinance and pay even less than they were before.  You will rarely see a landlord lower the rent. Now to get a little more personal, number 5 is freedom/greater privacy.  I feel that these two are very similar in that they both have to do with your personal space.  Everyone wants to make their space comfortable to them and with a home you are free to do this in a way that isn’t possible with most rentals.  Not everyone cares about staying in the same place, but if children are involved,  proximity to schools, friends, and family often becomes a priority, so stability is my number 6.  Backyards aren’t necessary but as we noticed over the last few years, they may be extremely beneficial to our physical and mental health, therefore, I have included them as number 7.   There are obviously many reasons to own a home, however,  in my opinion, these are the top 7 reasons to own a home.  If I haven’t included a reason you think is as important as these, please share it with me in the comments below.   I’d love to discuss your pros and cons over a cup of coffee.  If you’ve ‘taken inventory’ and decided to become a homeowner or would just like to talk it over with someone, give me a call.

Like many other newly married couples fresh out of college, my bride and I found ourselves with precious little net worth as we began our search for our very first residence together. Also, like many other people in this stage of life, we, unfortunately, had few options other than renting in an apartment. Nonetheless, we found a decent complex in Hanahan at a reasonable price and started living the “renting life.” All was well, and we were enjoying the simple pleasures of our shared space… that was until the bed bugs started biting. I’ve never been so thankful in my life for such a pandemic! You heard me right: thankful for bed bugs. Want to know why? It forced us to get off of our complacency coupe and start looking for a real home! After a few short months of sleeping with anxiety inside of our bed-bug infested apartment, our amazing realtor was able to show us a home that we fell in love with right away, and I’ll tell you what, we’ve never looked back. I’m here to give you five reasons why owning a home is better than renting a space. Here we go. Renting Takes a Bigger Portion of your Income Renting often costs more than a monthly mortgage payment. Ironic, isn’t it? A recent RealtyTrac study found that in the majority of counties and communities it surveyed, buying a median-priced home was more affordable than renting one. The study took into account three-bedroom properties in a sampling of 543 counties across the nation and revealed that, in at least 68% of these counties, owning was more affordable. (Visit here for more information about the statistics: Homeowners Have it Better). In areas of the larger population, landlords take advantage of the fact that many require a more temporary residence, and upcharge their monthly payments. And even in cases where monthly rent and monthly mortgage payments are the same, homeowners indeed do have it better, which leads us to the next point. Rent Money is Lost Simply put, every dime of the check you write to pay your landlord is lost once it reaches their hand, whereas a portion of your monthly mortgage payment pays off the principal of your loan, building equity. Sadly, the word “mortgage” strikes fear into the hearts of many when, in reality, it is a great opportunity to use your income to your advantage! If you are out living on your own, and your cash flow can withstand the out-goof rent, this is all the more reason to stop letting it sink into the drain. Personally, this was my greatest issue with apartment living: there were no long term benefits for the use of my money. This leads to point #3. Thinking Long Term Raise your hand if you want to retire at age 65 and finally settle down into that nice rental property in your hometown neighborhood. Seeing no hands, I’m pretty sure we can all agree that renting is supposed to be temporary. Nevertheless, people find themselves in apartments or rental properties for years at a time. I understand that there are periods of financial difficulty, and saving for a down payment can take some time, but here’s the truth: so long as you are living in a rented property, you are sitting at a red light. Stationary. Your capital has nowhere to build. The exact opposite is true of homeownership: your wealth has a place to grow. Where might that wealth lead someday? A vacation property by the beach? Being able to pass ownership of your home to your children someday? Those are the long term benefits many of us long for when it comes to homeownership. And it all starts from breaking away from the bonds of renting. You Have More Control Rents can go up or down, and house prices can, too, don’t get me wrong. But when you buy instead of rent, you have more control. Traditionally when you lock yourself into a mortgage, your monthly rates stay the same throughout the life of the loan you took out to buy the house (typically 15-year or 30-year loans). This is meant to protect you from the fluctuating rollercoaster of rising and falling prices in the market, which is exactly what can come from renting. We all have enough to worry about when it comes to our monthly fluctuating expenses: groceries, electricity, gas, etc. Why not relieve ourselves of one piece of anxiety by knowing exactly what our monthly payment is for our property? After all, the more predictable your budget is, the better you can plan for your financial future. Customizing Your Space Let’s end this article with something we all care about: how our home looks. There is something special about having the ability to customize every facet of where you live, and that is the beauty of homeownership. Minor HOA restrictions aside, the freedom to landscape your lawn, paint the walls any color, remodel the kitchen, replace carpet with hardwood flooring, and the list goes on! Meanwhile, inside a rental, the landlord MIGHT let you put a few picture frames on the walls. When you buy a house, you can make changes that you want, whenever you want to. So start looking! House hunting is a very rewarding process, so long as you are in the right hands. And looking back, you will rejoice with all of the equity you built up in your home, as you look to redecorate your kitchen cabinets to better complement the countertops. Personally, my only regret is we didn’t start looking for a house sooner. Contact me today to start looking for your perfect home.