There is a reason it’s called Home Sweet Home

(Riverside, California)…We’ve spent a lot of time in this space talking about real estate, repo’s, short sales, foreclosures, etc…and while that is all well and good, today I really wish to address all those people in “Real Estate Land” who are thinking solely about buying a home because it is a good thing for their family.  Whether you are a first time buyer or simply someone who hasn’t done this much, it is a scary experience…and maybe we can help with the mental side of your housing equation.

These days, it can be hard to know what to do.  The media would have you offer blood sacrifices to appease the real estate gods so you will get a sign on when to buy, and if you have read anything on this blog at all (which I assume you have or why would you be reading this?), we are very committed that now is one of the greatest times to purchase a home in recent history.  Who is telling the truth?  When is the right time to buy?

WELL, IT DOESN’T MATTER…and that is the point of todays lesson.  Let the class begin.

Our society in general (philosophical rant here) has made far too big an issue about maximizing your real estate investment on your home.  I am not talking about investing in rental properties here…that is a completely different animal.  Today, I am talking to the young (or old for that matter) couple who is contemplating taking that huge first step by purchasing their first home…or that single college grad with a solid job, who is also scared about what to do…or whomever else is nervous and anxious about real estate because the media tells you that is how you should feel.  Well, the heck with the media…BECAUSE IT DOESN’T MATTER.

I am all for making money on real estate.  Hey, the desire to prosper financially is a basic drive that is posessed by us all…but far too much noise has been made about money, real estate, and your home.  Buy now, don’t buy now; leverage your cash or put a lot of money down;  pay off your mortgage or refinance and owe a ton; whatever.  Unfortunately, while all this is important on a small picture scale, it is meaningless on the big picture plan.  Why?  

BECAUSE MOST PEOPLE HAVE FORGOTTEN WHAT THE DIFFERENCE IS BETWEEN A HOME AND A HOUSE…and it is here where the media (and some Realtors as well) have grossly missed the point.

You can call owning a home the American Dream, but I have a feeling it is far more universal than that.  I don’t want to get all soppy here and sound like a really bad country western song, but all the pragmatic talk I mentioned above misses the only real point…which is that a home is far more than the mortgage, price, and payments.

A home is where you mow your own grass, not the landlords.  A home is where you raise your kids, light your own fire, paint the walls any color you want without checking with someone else first, and play your music as loud as your speakers will allow.  It is where your daughter has her first prom, your son sprains his ankle because he saw Spiderman jump from the fence and thought it looked cool, and you can have a dog…because no matter how absolutely crappy your day is, your dog only knows he is glad to see you when you hit the door.

Your home is where you plant your new tree…a tree that has the potential to be there long after you may have left for a bigger home.  That tree has roots…and a home represents roots for you as well.  No longer are you subject to the whimsical rent raises of a jerky landlord, or a forced move because the real owner decides to sell the house out from underneath you.  This is your home now, and you can move or stay at your choice, not someone else’s.  A home is what we fight wars for, and the reason our original forefathers founded this country.  You now own land…they couldn’t…and you have a permanence that transcends everything else.  Possession is yours, and you decide who gets to come and play on your land, in your home.  Can there be anything more validating than that?  I don’t think so.  It’s called pride…and it feels good.

AND THAT IS WHY ALL THE “STUFF” MENTIONED EARLIER SIMPLY DOESN’T MATTER.

As Realtors, we want you to make money on your home…and we want you to enjoy all the tax advantages that come with home ownership.  These are great perks.  But sometimes we too have lost sight that while these things are important, they pale in comparison to  what really matters. 

This is your home…and when you really understand that, then all the minutia droned daily in the media will simply fade away as inconsequential noise….because you own a home, and really are the King of your Castle.  What a great country we live in that we all have that opportunity.

So…does price matter?  Or when to buy?  Or how much to spend per month?  Yes…and No.  In the small picture, of course they do…but in the grand big picture…the picture your parents and grand parents saw more easily than we….No.  What matters is your dream.  Buy a home…play the music loud…and dance like a fool.  It’s your home…enjoy it.