If you've ever sold a house, you know what a pain in the ass house shoppers can be . . . and for good reason. Buying a house is a big thing in our lives because they cost lots of money, and deciding what to buy is important. Some people find that out after they've bought one, not before, and that's an expensive lesson. The buyer tends to spend more than they should and therefore ends up with big house payments. That's acceptable to most folks for a while, but then then new starts to wear off the new house, and the payments get to be more and more of a burden. In other words, our wants exceed our comfort zone when it comes to finances. We do that because we've been suckered. We bought into all the bullshit about what a good house needs.
I'm not about to go through all the things that make houses expensive, but I'll touch on a few. My daughter wants a house, and she's married to a man who can afford a nice one. He's works the oil patches, makes good money doing it but is not at home much. With a salary of over a hundred grand a year, and with not much encumbered income, he's a good potential buyer. Like lots of younger people, they've always wanted to be where the action is - in or near a city. Neither of them knows much about houses, and that's where I come in. She wants to buy an older home and fix it up, and I've got experience with that. And she's finally started to recognize a simple fact of life - buying with location in mind, wanting the urban life, is expensive. Real expensive. The best buys in housing are out in the smaller towns where most people don't want to live.
So, I point out things that are obvious to me. Your husband is in a risky business, one with lots of ups and downs. Yeah, he's doing well now making big money, but in the oil business that can be an on and off thing. Don't buy over your head. Forget about what you can afford right now and look down the road. Ask yourself questions like, "If he's off work for six months, will we be able to hang onto the house? What's my comfort zone when it comes to house payments? Where is the best place for me to locate?"
I bought a house back in 2000 here in Brady, Texas, and I did that because I could afford a lot more house here than I could in Austin or some small town near there. In fact, I got twice as much house here than I could there . . . and I'm still close to several large towns. The house I bought was only 6 years old, had 2,400 sq. feet of living space with a big two car garage and nice yard. It is also on a corner lot just across the street for a park in a quiet neighborhood. My house payments are under $700 a month, and the place is more than half paid for. In other words, I've got lots of equity. That's good because property tax in Texas is borderline outrageous and utilities are high. Including upkeep and insurance added to high tax and utilities, my costs of living here are well over twice what the payments are. Lots of homebuyers don't see that coming. No sweat, though. We can afford it because we bought wisely.
A smart move in buying a home starts with knowing what not to spend unnecessary money on, like granite counter tops. I'm lucky because my wife doesn't like them, thinks they're a bother. We've stayed busy the past ten years making this house into a home that fits us - new bathroom fixtures, lots of ceiling fans, a garage addition as a big hobby room for her, a patio room out back. The house is now over 3,000 square feet, but with no garage. That comes next, and a kitchen redo. We'll always be working on the house, but we started with a good one, and that counts for a lot. That's what I'm encouraging my daughter to do, and she's beginning to see the light.
Be a smart buyer and get into something that shows promise. Don't over buy and look ahead. Don't get suckered by all the propaganda about what cool houses should have, like granite counter tops. There are lots of alternatives that look just as good, cost much less. You might even learn what we have, that hardwood floors are a real pain in the ass - expensive to buy and hard to maintain. Put some time into gathering information about all this, and ahead of time, not after you've already made the mistake of buying poorly. I can't stress enough the point that you should never strap yourself with big house payments. New wears off anything you buy before long, but payments are always new.
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