"The Joys of Home Ownership"

[grphyx1]

Somebody please explain what this means???? Outside of the whole building equity BS, when does the Joy HIT???!!! We have been in a new home for almost a year now and I swear that not a month has gone by that something new hasn't popped up. So somebody tell me it's going to get better?!!

 

[devilof76]

So somebody tell me it's going to get better?!!

Tomorrow.

 

[King Darkness]

Its not meant literally.The "joys" are more like the hardships and annoyances of owning a home.

 

[karamazov80]

It depends on where you live, what kind of house you have, and what you're pre-ownership experiences were of course. But in my case, our getting a house was one of the best moves we could have made for our situation. General improvements over renting is that there are no ********* landlords and you can make improvements as you please. Your mileage may vary of course, considering you have to pay for said improvements and some lucky bastards might not have ********* landlords, etc.

I have spent way more time than I would like to fixing and improving ____, though. I spent most of yesterday painting and doing plumbing work.

 

[grphyx1]

I think the person that started the phrase was one of those misery loves company kinda person. UGH!!

Its not meant literally.The "joys" are more like the hardships and annoyances of owning a home.

 

[grphyx1]

Ideally this should be a dream home for most, but I am beginning to believe that not everybody is cut out for owning a home. I live right in the city and walk everywhere. No improvements necessary, we were lucky enough to meet with the builder before and he let us pick most of the major finishes. But, new construction comes with its own set of downfalls and 8 months of leaking windows, bug infestation, mold in basement (from leak), cracked stackpipe, to get the insurance renewal with the increase yesterday just pushed me near the edge just needed to vent!!! I know I am not the only one that feels this way.

It depends on where you live, what kind of house you have, and what you're pre-ownership experiences were of course. But in my case, our getting a house was one of the best moves we could have made for our situation. General improvements over renting is that there are no ********* landlords and you can make improvements as you please. Your mileage may vary of course, considering you have to pay for said improvements and some lucky bastards might not have ********* landlords, etc.

I have spent way more time than I would like to fixing and improving ____, though. I spent most of yesterday painting and doing plumbing work.

 

[karamazov80]

That kind of thing is a hassle (pests are a pain here, and I've got a 30 year old house that requires a fair amount of maintenance), but the pros so far outweigh the cons for me. I'm really enjoying having our own place where we can do what we want without being hassled too much. I rented for nearly 10 years and had had quite enough of that.

 

[grphyx1]

I guess it's the shock because this is our first place. I have been renting since 1989 so yeah it's been a rough transition. Thanks for giving me perspective. I look forward to the day where I can feel happy walking through the door.

 

[galactiboy]

I think the tipping point for me was that by paying a mortgage I'm at least putting money into something I could one day see a return on. Renting just means my money is getting pissed away each month.

Also, As Karamazov mentioned it is nice to be able to do what you want when you want with the home... but of course its your dime if something goes wrong I will say after purchasing my first home I now know a lot more about what to look for and what to ask for during negotiations. I have a feeling this will help make the next home a much smoother process.

 

[CollectorNC]

It's one of the most saracastic statements out there. I now celebrate nearly my first year of home ownership (a house instead of townhouse) and we bought a 17 year old house. I thought the new townhouse 9 years ago was a pain with a "punch list" of 20 some items that contractors/builders wanted to skimp on. Well, it's the same and worse with an older house. It had two owners and all of their bad habits (read--pets that destroyed wood and lack of maintenance costing me thousands). I seriously encourage anyone in the market to really do ONE THING. Get a good home inspector. You pay out of pocket 700-800 for one. Make sure you research the company. I got referred one that missed A LOT. Stuff that cost me A LOT down the road. "The Joys of Home Ownership" is a misnomer or nonsensical statement. It should be "The TRIALS and TRIBULATIONS of Home Ownership." I assume down the road after spending a quarter of my yearly income each year...haha...I will find some joy with THAT being behind me.

 

[grphyx1]

CollectorNC, I tell ya, I watched those stoopid shows on HGTV where everybody is always so happy to finally get their own place and they're "so HAPPY" to be home owners that I actually thought, that when I got a house I'd feel that way. Well lo and behold you are right that you need to ask the right questions, and they should have a show on that channel about the gripes and anguish the little things that pop up cause.

 

[grphyx1]

I am glad it's not just me, because i seriously had started looking for psychiatrist because I was getting depressed about the whole thing, thinking that I was going through and extreme case of buyers remorse.

It's one of the most saracastic statements out there. . "The Joys of Home Ownership" is a misnomer or nonsensical statement. It should be "The TRIALS and TRIBULATIONS of Home Ownership."

 

[karamazov80]

Get a good home inspector.

We did that, for sure. And the house already had termite protection (we have to pay almost $300 a year to keep it up, but figure it is definitely a worthwhile expense). I am actually currently on the fence about keeping up the "Home Shield" insurance for another year in case the a/c, water heater, or electrical work needs maintenance. It costs nearly $500 for the year, so I think I'll gamble on that one and fix stuff as needed, if needed.

Surely, I wouldn't recommend having a house unless you are willing to pay for various types of insurance and repairs. Still, like I said, I'm enjoying it a lot. Maybe I just had really bad experiences with my landlords, though. The last one was a complete douche in every way I could think of, and before that, the guy was completely unresponsive to my issues and I had to hassle him over and over and over to get my deposit back. Not going back to that if I can help it.

 

[grphyx1]

Karamazov, i think this might shock you but we literally had the best company for a landlord and we loved the management company of the place we rented from for almost 12 years. and before that my landlord was amazing. so that's why I was sad leaving the renting world.

 

[FLOSI]

I think the "joy" comes from the ass ____ing you feel each and every time you make a $2200 payment and see $17.78 go to the principle.

 

[CollectorNC]

CollectorNC, I tell ya, I watched those stoopid shows on HGTV where everybody is always so happy to finally get their own place and they're "so HAPPY" to be home owners that I actually thought, that when I got a house I'd feel that way. Well lo and behold you are right that you need to ask the right questions, and they should have a show on that channel about the gripes and anguish the little things that pop up cause.

They do on HGTV. "Holmes Inspections" or something like that. Not sure the time but he and his team go in and tear a house apart and list everything wrong or harmful and then repair it.

 

[galactiboy]

I am actually currently on the fence about keeping up the "Home Shield" insurance for another year in case the a/c, water heater, or electrical work needs maintenance. It costs nearly $500 for the year, so I think I'll gamble on that one and fix stuff as needed, if needed.

Home Shield is kind of a pain... I had an issue come up that could have cost me thousands of dollars and when I got my claim filed I found out that issues underneath the slab were only covered up to $500! So luckily it was a best case scenario and I paid $800, $500 of which (what I pay per year of home sheild) I got back

But I do still keep it, just in case some serious ____ really hits the fan. Since its monthly payments I don't feel as bad about it.

 

[CollectorNC]

We did that, for sure. And the house already had termite protection (we have to pay almost $300 a year to keep it up, but figure it is definitely a worthwhile expense). I am actually currently on the fence about keeping up the "Home Shield" insurance for another year in case the a/c, water heater, or electrical work needs maintenance. It costs nearly $500 for the year, so I think I'll gamble on that one and fix stuff as needed, if needed.
Surely, I wouldn't recommend having a house unless you are willing to pay for various types of insurance and repairs. Still, like I said, I'm enjoying it a lot. Maybe I just had really bad experiences with my landlords, though. The last one was a complete douche in every way I could think of, and before that, the guy was completely unresponsive to my issues and I had to hassle him over and over and over to get my deposit back. Not going back to that if I can help it.

If that is a home warranty paid for by the seller, they aren't worth it. I just let mine expire. I am in the insurance field and after reading the fine print, the maximum payout on my "free" one year home warranty was 1500 after paying the deductible. In our first winter we had to replace the furnace...6000k. Since it wasn't broken, but just dangerously cracked (the heat exchanger), the warranty didn't cover. See, for most home warranties, they are overpriced at 250-800 a year depending on what they offer and they require payment of a deductible and usually only cover something that is broken, not breaking.

 

[CollectorNC]

I think the "joy" comes from the ass ____ing you feel each and every time you make a $2200 payment and see $17.78 go to the principle.

haha, there you go. Makes me all warm and fuzzy every month.

 

[grphyx1]

Okay all of this is making me seriously re-think getting a therapist. I shoulda posed this topic before we got the house:-(