An option for me to buy a house has come up very suddenly and it seemed like a good idea at first - but I look at a mortgage and think “that’s 15 years I’ll spend paying back, at absolute minimum. Probably more like 25 years” - how can I possibly plan that far in advance?
So, how did you feel about getting a mortgage and seeing such a serious commitment stretch so far into the future? I’m mainly talking about the emotional side of things rather than financial
It was terrifying. So much more so than buying a car.
I thought of it as “locking in my rent”. For me that helped as my rent kept going up.
Additionally, if you eventually want to move, you’ll usually come out ahead a little bit. I was in a popular market, but I think we bought at 220k and sold at 320k. After all was said and done, I think we had a nice 60k profit, and we did not take the highest offer, we took one from a buyer that we knew was a family that would move in. Not a bad consolation prize for a break up, and I think we were only in it for…3 years?
Selling is stressful, but not nearly as much as buying.
Yeah I thought of it as locking in my rent too! But then I found out that my housing payments have gone up each year like rent has. And it’s basically the same cost as renting. Oh well.
Taxes and insurance increase but you have to consider that taxes and insurance is increasing at the same rate for the individuals who own rental properties, which then get passed on to the renters.