Homeownership is usually the biggest financial transaction that a person engages in. Because of this, first-time homebuyers tend to focus on the numbers and the housing market, oftentimes dismissing the overall, incalculable reasons to buy and own your own home.
Here are five priceless reasons why the value of owning your own home far outweighs the alternative of renting.
Create a Sense of Home
When you own your home, you are more deeply tied to your city, neighborhood, and community. This stability and level of permanence can be positively transformative for many people, particularly those with a history of frequent moving, who are looking for a more permanent residence — a place to plant their roots.
But even if the stability of your living situation isn’t a main priority, we all want home to feel like home, and ownership provides far more options and flexibility.
From adding wallpaper to choosing paint, or even adding a room by knocking down a wall to expand the space, the value of owning a home is that you can customize and create the ultimate, personal and “homey” ambiance.
[Related: Simple Home Improvements You Can Do While Sheltering in Place]
Express Your Personality
Beyond providing a cozy and comforting sense of home, your house is a canvas on which to express yourself — a ball of clay to be molded to your creative aspirations. By owning your home, you can express your personality in the decor and design of every room, from top to bottom, with little to stop or limit your dreams.
You can even express different parts of your personality in different rooms or features of your home, without having to ask permission from a landlord, or worry about having to repaint or eliminate any sign of your existence when you have to move out.
[Related: Guide to Buying a Home in Seattle]
Increase Your Sustainability
We live in a world where living more sustainably and reducing our harm on the environment is essential and often at the forefront of our minds when making big decisions. When you own your home rather than rent, you can take this into your own hands.
By owning your own home, you have the power to make eco-friendly improvements to the materials that make up the building’s structure and function, replacing them with more environmentally conscious, eco-sourced, or energy-efficient alternatives.
You can also add or integrate more “green” features such as solar panels or drip irrigation systems to help reduce the carbon footprint your home makes.
Make Space to Grow
For some, buying a home is that next step toward personal aspirations, such as settling down and having a family. With this dream in mind, you can purchase a home that will accommodate your growing family (immediately, or with options for future add-ons).
The stability of owning your home will also translate to amplifying the feeling of security and belonging that the space inspires in your children as they grow up.
[Related: Important Tips for Millennial Homebuyers]
Attain Better Privacy
One of the drawbacks to renting a home is the access your landlord has to your personal space. Sure, they must give notice before entering, but this is rarely specific, and you may find yourself avoiding certain tasks or activities on the chance they will arrive when it’s least convenient.
You cannot control your privacy nearly as much as when you own your home. If desired, you can also enhance the privacy features when you own property by adding a fence, planting some thick shrubs or hedges, or installing a home security system.
Of course, owning a home is an asset! A home that you own is a literal “nest” egg for your future, making your housing expenses more fixed and giving you a long-term plan to reduce them significantly once you pay off your mortgage (therefore making your retirement budget and other savings goals more attainable.)
[Related: The Best Times to Buy a House in Seattle]
The decision to go for homeownership is about more than just the numbers. Consulting with an experienced mortgage planner can help you weigh and discuss all the calculable and incalculable reasons to own your home versus renting, and help you with things such as getting your mortgage approved, purchasing homeowner’s insurance, and any other questions you may have.
Contact a trusted mortgage broker at Seattle Mortgage Planners today!
