I’m Buying A House. Here’s Why (and why not).

It was bound to happen eventually.

I’ve been wanting to buy a house for several years now. It was partly emotional, partly financial and partly a desire to establish a more permanent residence, thereby helping to fulfill my safety needs (Maslow anyone?). Well that day looks like it’s finally come. My wife and I have been hunting for homes for about a month now in the Phoenix area and about a week ago we found one that we absolutely adore. We placed a bid on it and our bid has been accepted. Now we work out the rest of the stuff: appraisal, inspection, closing and then we will be homeowners!

It’s rather quite exciting. I have some major plans, such as planting a garden to grow my own fruits and vegetables, or decorating the home exactly how I’d like it (I feel limited here in this apartment because I don’t want to paint or put too many holes in the wall).

We found a beautiful house that is offering us just about everything we want. It’s a single story three bedroom, two bathroom house with vaulted ceilings in all the right places and a very large (for the city) lot. It’s in a great location (North Phoenix) that’s not only close to work but also close to everything else: downtown Phoenix, Scottsdale and even the West Valley (where our families live). We couldn’t be happier about the home that we’ve found.

Before I cut off let me tell you what is not motivating me to buy a house. It’s really only one reason, and is often the main reason for certain types of people to purchase a home. I’m not buying this house as an investment. In my eyes a home is not a builder of wealth. It is not an ATM machine. The real return on homes has historically never been as good as other types of investments. Sure you can’t live in other investments, but that still doesn’t mean you should count on all of your wealth building to come solely from the house that you buy. I’m not counting on it, and neither should you.