[quote author="caycifish" date=1218842498][quote author="awgee" date=1218835494][quote author="CalGal" date=1218798943]<blockquote>$228 per square foot? Things are getting very good indeed. I am almost tempted to start heading down to the courthouse on auction day. Almost, only because prices will get even better in the next few years. </blockquote>
Awgee, next few years? Does Mrs. Awgee know you are talking a few <strong>years </strong>before you buy? Or are you like Mr. Calgal who tells Mrs. CalGal, "Next year we'll buy." And four years later . . . . the CalGal family is still in a rental.
:coolsmile:</blockquote>
I tell her we will buy whenever she wants; tomorrow if that is what she wants. But, I show her the houses we can buy today and I show her the houses we will be able to buy in a couple of years. Her choice. How about you? Would you rather buy right now? Or would you rather live in a rental and buy later?</blockquote>
I'm certainly choosing the rental option for the time being. I can't paint, but other than that I have nested just fine in my rented townhouse. I admit, unless the kids' school district is an issue, I don't understand all the discussions I see here about females being the ones who need to nest in a home they own. Cover the walls with pictures of loved ones or places, or things that make you happy to look at, and call it good. Buy a rug, if needed. Your furniture is still your furniture.</blockquote>
It's more than just decorating. The home we are in needs new wiring and a security system. I would plant flowers and trees in the backyard. I would remove the single-pane windows and put in double-pane windows. I would change the interior paint colors. I would knock down walls and change the floor plan a bit. The bathroom needs total redue, the a/c unit needs to be replaced and re-balanced. The furnace needs to be replaced. I would add better window treatments and replace the carpets. We would build storage cabinets and a loft in the garage etc. And, I hesitate to buy new furniture because I'm not sure if it will fit to the configurations of our next house. Plus, every time you move your furniture, and no matter how careful you or the movers are with your furniture, it gets dented or scratched.
Rental living is completely different than owning one's own house. It's not your house, it's your landlord's house. I don't want to invest my money into my landlord's house. Once you've owned a house, it's difficult to rent.
I'm sure I'm not alone on this thinking. Even my husband is itchin' to have his own house again.
And the rental we have is sooooo much better than any we have seen on the market.