1.  Freedom

Think back to your first car.  Brand new and shiny or used with a little wear and tear, either way it was your car.  One of the first sensations that came with the car was a sense of freedom.  Instantly, you had freedom to drive when you wanted, where you wanted, and to decide who got to tag along.  No more asking for permission.  The keys rested permanently in your pocket.  That’s freedom.  Now take that sensation, multiply by 10, and what you have is home ownership.

With all the benefits of owning a home, freedom tops the list.  No more asking for permission.  You are the landlord.  Paint the walls, take out a wall, add a wall, add a window, add a room, you decide.  Attach permanent fixtures and decorate in a style that matches your personality.  If you like your music loud, crank it up.  You decide.  If you want to skinny dip in the pool, go ahead.  Let the hedges grow a little higher first.  The point is, you are no longer restricted and constrained the way you were when you rented. You no longer feel as if you’re living in someone else’s home.  That’s because you’re not; you’re living in your home.  That realization provides a giant relief, a comfort you can never feel when you rent.

2.  Privacy

You know what it’s like, renting that is.  It starts out nice enough.  But then you notice you can hear your neighbors through the walls.  Guess what?  If you can hear them, they can hear you.  That realization will quiet your night life.  Then the nice couple on your right brings home a bouncing baby boy, and you’re up every night for the 2 o’clock feeding.  Think that’s bad, just hope you’re not around when that baby turns two and starts using the common wall for a hand ball court.  Privacy goes hand in hand with freedom.  With privacy you are free to do pretty much what you want within your own space, within reason of course.  Home ownership gives you more privacy.  You have a buffer between you and your neighbors consisting of your yard, their yard, and a nice fence.  That buffer gives you the space to stretch out and the freedom and privacy to act out.

3.  More Space

Speaking of space, in your own home you can have “walk-in” closets you can actually walk into.  You can have extra closets and pantries, attic storage, and under-the-stairs storage.  You can build extra shelves or extra rooms.  You’re going to need the extra space for your extra stuff.

And what about your car; remember that car you’re so proud of.  That bright shiny paint doesn’t have to get pock marked with water spots every time it rains.  That’s because in your own home you will have a garage, a two-car garage.  That will give you some extra space for storing the things you never had room for before such as Christmas decorations, your tools, your bicycle, and the pool supplies.

5.  Amenities

That’s right, POOF!  You now have your very own pool and spa where you can swim and relax anytime you want, day or night.  That’s not possible in an apartment.  You no longer need to worry about the pool closing at 10 p.m.

Imagine this.  It’s the first night in your very own home.  You’ve been moving boxes and furniture all day.  It’s 10 p.m.  You’re hot, tired, and you really need to relax.  This is what you do.  Take the blow-up beach mattress, leaning against the wall in your garage, place it gently in the cool blue water of your pool, and plop yourself down.  Now, just float as you stare up at the stars.  It’s quiet, peaceful, relaxing.  And don’t forget your favorite beverage.  Now sip, float, and stare up at the stars.  It’s your pool, one of the many amenities attached to your house.

There’s no limit to the amenities you can include with your home.  Would you like a patio?  No problem, you now have the space.  Be sure to include some shrubs and tiki lights; your guests will appreciate that along with the chicken and steaks sizzling on the barbeque grill, the comfortable outdoor furniture, and some great conversation without worrying about disturbing the neighbors in the next apartment.

For those energetic souls there’s the garden.  You now have a yard; you can have a real garden, not a few herbs growing in a bowl on your counter.  Get down there and become one with the dirt.  Then sit back and watch your handiwork blossom, literally.  Your plants take root in the soil as you take root in the community.

6.  Stability

This is the kind of living you could get used to, long term.  If something is not quite right with your home—like you need another room for your growing family—you don’t have to move.  Just add another room.  You now have roots.  You have a connection to your community.  You’re a property owner.  You have a vested interest in what happens in your neighborhood and your city.  As a result, you’re much more likely to become involved, to care about local politics, the tax situation, how you want the tax revenue spent, and a long list of other issues.  This is now your community, and you can help shape its future.  As never before you now have stability, something you can count on, a home to come home to.

4.  Security

You’ve heard the saying.  Your home is your castle.  That’s even more so when you own your home.  That’s because you can add as much security as you want from a few extra door locks to a complete electronic security system including outside motion detectors and flood lights, all wired to your home security monitoring company, remotely accessed from anywhere in the world.  That’s probably a bit of overkill, but you get the point.  If you travel for business you won’t have to worry about your spouse being home alone, or walking through a dark apartment parking lot to the car.  If the wife needs milk and bread in the middle of the night, she will be safe in her car before she ever leaves the garage.

As home owner benefits go, the really good stuff is yet to come.  Let’s talk about the financial benefits.

7.  Forced Savings & Investment

Let’s talk money.  The money you save with buying your home versus renting is big; it can be really big.  Let’s say you rent for five years and then decide to move.  You load up the moving van, and off you go with absolutely nothing to show for the thousand dollars or so on average you paid each and every one of those 60 months.  That’s $60,000!  True, it paid for a roof over your head, but owning a home can do much more.

Replay that scene, the one about moving after five years.  But this time you’ve owned your home, paying a mortgage of say $1,300 each month toward $200,000 you finance on a $250,000 purchase.  Over the 60 months you pay out $78,000 for principle and interest and another $30,000 for property tax and insurance for a total of $108,000.  Each month that portion of the $78,000 paid against the principle reduces the balance.  At the end of five years the balance on your loan is only $187,000.  You’ve paid down the balance by $13,000.  That, along with your $50,000 down payment is called equity.

Additionally, let’s say your home has appreciated at five percent per year, which is well within reason and actually rather conservative in a normal market.  At the end of five years your home is worth $319,000; that’s $69,000 more than you paid for the home, which is also equity.  You sell the home and pay your Realtor his 6 percent commission of $19,000 along with $2,200 in state documentary stamps and $1,900 in title insurance, all paid at closing.  That’s a total of $23,100 in closing costs, leaving a difference of $295,900 from your sale price.  After you pay off the balance on your loan and repay your parents the $50,000 you borrowed for the down payment, you’re on your way with $58,900 in your pocket.

It’s true that each month you paid $800 more than you would have had you rented, but that’s where the “forced savings” comes into play.  Over the five years you paid an extra $48,000 ($800 x 60).  That plus an extra $10,900 totaling the $58,900 went into your home “bank.”  Financially, buying is a much better deal than renting.  By buying you can save enough money to make your next down payment on your own.  And the best part, with the capital gains exclusion that $58,900 is all tax free.  But the tax benefits just keep on rolling.

8.  Income Tax Benefits

One of the most well known and publicized benefits is the income tax advantage that comes with owning your home.  Remember all that interest you paid on the mortgage.  Of the $78,000 you paid out over those five years, $65,000 went to interest.  Interest on a home loan along with the property tax you pay on your home is deductible from your income thus lowering the amount of Federal income tax you pay each year.  Rent is not deductible.  There is no tax benefit to renting. Generally, the deductible interest and property tax on a home valued at over $100,000 or so can often be more than the standard deduction.  This means you can itemize thus opening up a whole bunch of additional deductions such as medical costs, charitable donations, employee expenses, and more.

9.  Borrowing Against Equity

Let’s say that at the end of five years you don’t want to move, but you do need $40,000 to start your own business.  Remember that equity you have built up in your home from paying down the loan balance along with the five percent or so your home has increased in value each year.  You can tap that equity without selling your home.  Banks and mortgage companies line up to give you a home equity loan.  Generally, the interest rate on an equity loan is much lower than a personal loan.  And the interest you pay on the equity loan is also deductible when computing your income tax.  That’s a triple benefit: easy to obtain, lower interest rate, and tax deductible.

10.  Stable Housing Costs

When you rent, every year like clock work, you get a little something extra in your mail box—a rent increase notice.  Unlike a fixed mortgage with which your payment can basically remain the same each month for up to 30 years, rent increases every year.  For most people the rate of increase is greater than the rate of increase for your pay, if there is any increase for your pay.  Rent can, and often does, eventually outstrip your paycheck.  A stable monthly mortgage payment is something you can count on and budget for.  That’s an important benefit for you and your family.  By owning your home no longer will you need to take food, medicine, or entertainment dollars to pay your increasing rent.

Conclusion

There you have it—ten really good reasons for owning your home.  And as mentioned earlier, it’s easier than you think.  For most people the biggest obstacle is the down payment.  In the example above the $50,000 down payment represented 20 percent of the purchase price.  That’s ideal—20 percent or more for a down payment.  But mortgages can be obtained for much less.  If your credit is in good shape, 100% loans are available.  That means no money down.

To explore the possibilities start with your Realtor.  He or she will evaluate your situation and make recommendations.  Then you decide.  If you decide to make the move into home ownership, he or she will take care of the rest.  It’s that easy.

“Almost any man worthy of his salt would fight to defend his home, but no one ever heard of a man going to war for his boarding house.”— Mark Twain

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