Comments on: Why You Shouldn’t Buy a House in Your 20s (Pros & Cons)

By: One Frugal Girl

One Frugal Girl — Sat, 01 May 2021 13:10:01 +0000

In reply to Bright Future. Thank you for your comment. I wish someone had offered the advice I wrote about when I was looking for a home.I wish your daughter the best. Some young couples love owning a house together early on. Hopefully, they turn out to love their new home!

By: Bright Future

Bright Future — Thu, 29 Apr 2021 20:14:22 +0000

I’m so glad you posted this. These are such good questions to ask yourself as a young adult buying your first house. My daughter and her fiance recently “surprised” me by buying a house together and THEN telling me about it (fait accompli). While I was happy for their excitement, and there was no point in putting a wet blanket on it at that point, I sure wish they had consulted me before the fact. I would have told them the same things that you wrote about here. Or, if I had read it first, I could have just referred them to it. This is very good info. I hope you reach a lot of young folks before they take that big plunge for the first time!

By: One Frugal Girl

One Frugal Girl — Fri, 16 Apr 2021 04:43:43 +0000

In reply to Mistress of Home and Finance. I love the idea of being forced to build equity. I hadn't thought of that angle before, but it makes perfect sense. You have no choice but to save when you pay down your mortgage.

By: One Frugal Girl

One Frugal Girl — Fri, 16 Apr 2021 04:41:12 +0000

In reply to Erin. Woah that's one heck of an HOA increase! Are you getting any extra benefits from your property? Have they provided more services over the years?

By: One Frugal Girl

One Frugal Girl — Fri, 16 Apr 2021 04:39:36 +0000

In reply to Jenni @TTL. When I signed up to become a homeowner at age 24 I can honestly say I had no idea what I had gotten myself into. Buying a new house would've helped, but all problems have problems. In fact, sometimes newer homes have more issues than well maintained older ones. Good luck with your house. I'm jealous that you love your location, neighbors, and home. I hope we find that when we move!

By: One Frugal Girl

One Frugal Girl — Fri, 16 Apr 2021 04:36:55 +0000

In reply to Isa. Hi Isa, Thank you for your comment. I think I agree with you. At heart I wouldn't mind handing over all of my housing problems to someone else. Luckily, my husband enjoys fixing things and troubleshooting problems around the house. If he wasn't around I might prefer renting too!

By: One Frugal Girl

One Frugal Girl — Fri, 16 Apr 2021 04:31:26 +0000

In reply to Accidentally Retired. I'm glad your situation worked out. I wish we would have found a newer home. I think that would've changed my views on this immensely. Buying an old house, in an older neighborhood, was a huge mistake at the time!

By: Isa

Isa — Wed, 14 Apr 2021 19:47:04 +0000

We bought our first house when I was 28 and hubby 24. We stayed there 5 years before moving to our current house. This current house is now paid in full (with lots and lots of extra payments!!) and this is such a relief to own it! (Paid off at 39 and 35). But… I’m not a homeowner at heart. If I was on my own, I would rent a small appartement. I would love to hand out my rent and have zero responsabilities. I dislike the required maintenance of a house, and I resent the two flods we had since moving in ($$$,), with all the stress involved. So, yes, the house is paid off, but it is still about 5000$/year for insurances and municipal taxes+always something breaking or needing repairs. My house is fairly recent (35 years….ok, maybe not so recent) and in the last 5 years we had to invest around 30 000$ in it for hidden problems. So….. Owning a house is much more than a mortgage, that’s for sure!

By: Accidentally Retired

Accidentally Retired — Mon, 12 Apr 2021 22:06:57 +0000

My wife and I got very lucky in that when we went out to buy a house at the age of 24 as well, we bought a brand new one. Thankfully this made home ownership much easier for first-time home buyers. We also stayed in that house for 10 years, and ultimately I wish that we rented it out when we needed a larger home. We would be sitting on a cash flow positive rental that could be nearly paid off with a small prepayment.

But I agree, that if you don’t plan on staying put and you aren’t buying a newer home, it likely isn’t the wisest decision.

By: Erin

Erin — Sun, 11 Apr 2021 14:50:24 +0000

This is such a great article! My partner bought our home 16 years ago and I’ve been living here for the last 8, and have the same thoughts. He actually had the insight to know that he didn’t want to do yard work, so he bought a condo. In 16 years, the HOA has risen from $70 to $525/month with special assessment fees every 5 years. If anyone is considering a condo, duplex or similar, ask questions about responsibility for problems and HOA cost/benefits. We identified a small water leak several years ago and rather than replacing all of the pipes, the property management made us wait until our entire home flooded to repair only the damaged pipes and refund damaged furniture. We’re still waiting for the other shoe to drop…

The property value for the first 14 years was relatively stagnant, but has more than doubled in the last two years (hot market, great location, covid); had we sold within the first 14 years of ownership, he would have taken a loss on the home. Phoenix rentals are getting very expensive, so I’m glad we own… but even with the mortgage paid off, it’s still quite pricey and often stressful to be the one responsible for fixing a problem and replacing busted appliances.