Did you catch yesterday’s announcement? Our family announced that we’re officially homeowners!
We couldn’t be more excited to be officially official in our home, and in Michigan, for the long term. Our little home, which is perfect for us right now, is ours. That’s a pretty crazy thing to say. It just feels right, you know?!
But here’s a little reality check. We’ve always been renters, so we didn’t have a clue as to the learning curve that was coming our way when we decided to purchase our home. Let me tell you – there’s so much to the homebuying process and homeownership that we drastically underestimated before!
I thought it’d be helpful to put together a few of our biggest learnings and tips for buying a first home, in hopes that it can help fellow future homeowners feel more prepared as you take the big leap!
Signing on that dotted line is exciting but terrifying.
I envisioned chipper Emily, signing my name, smiling big while laughing, “Ha-ha-haaaa I’m so haaaaappy in this hoooome!” Instead, I was, quite frankly, a bit of a mess. I kept asking repeat questions to Doug when I already knew the answers. As I was signing, I was giving him dagger looks, silently cursing him for FORCING ME INTO THIS DECISION even though we both mutually wanted this. (Poor Doug, he has so much patience with me, ha!)
Don’t get me wrong. I was and am excited! This is a huge life move that we thought long and hard about, and we know it was the best decision to make. But when you’re sitting down with the loan officer, signing stacks of paper that make big financial numbers your responsibility, it kind of feels like you’re signing your freedom away. Especially when you’re used to renting and flexibility for so long as we had.
We own this now. Beyond selling, there’s no backing out. We’re doing this thing and are committed.
This was probably the closest I’ve ever been to being afraid of commitment. It just felt very big and final and OMG this is a lot and what if we don’t like the house in a year and what if everything breaks down at once and the thoughts kept circling over and over and over and over in my brain. See what I did there? That sentence was what it was like being in my head as I was signing.
The good news is that I got over it fairly quickly. Once the paperwork was done, and I processed things more, my mentality shifted to, “Okay, it’s ours; let’s really make this ours.” Which is absolutely a more productive way of thinking of it! Especially because….
It actually doesn’t feel much different than renting.
I’m not sure if this was because we bought the house we’re currently living in, or if it’s how we’d feel regardless. But owning a home honestly doesn’t feel much different than renting.
We owe a certain amount every month. The only real difference in the transaction now, is that we’re paying the bank instead of a landlord. Because in our minds it was such a big move and decision, I think we expected it to feel different once it was ours. The reality is that it feels very much the same.
Different transaction set-up, more responsibility. Homeownership in a nutshell!
All those things you called someone else to fix before? Surprise! They’re your responsibility now.
Ah, yes, this is probably the biggest change.
When you rent, you call someone if something breaks or when you need a replacement item. A landlord typically does things like yard work and shoveling. (Is that common? In our apartments, the landlords took care of all of this, because we shared yards with multiple other tenants.)
When you own your home, it’s alllll on you, my friend. Furnace broken? Pipe leaking? Appliance not working? (All of these things have actually happened to us in the last few months.) WHO YA GONNA CALL?! Ghostbusters won’t help you here.
You better have some trusted maintenance professionals on hand that you can trust and lean on to help you fix things promptly. (Who, I must say, I now have a strong appreciation for the amazing work they do.) And oh yes, be prepared to pay for it out of your pocket. No matter how much it costs. The alternative option is to get very good at YouTube searches for home repairs, to which Doug and I have gone down the rabbit hole multiple times only to end up calling the said professionals above. (We’re still such city folk, ha!)
Maintenance chores like yard work takes way more time than you’d think
When the weather started to warm up, Doug said to me, “I’m going to cut the grass quickly. I’ll be back in 20 minutes.”
Ha. Ha ha. Ha ha haaaa. The joke was on both of us because 2 HOURS later Doug was still out there. And we don’t even have that big of a yard! That stuff just takes time. Lots and lots of time. (Very regularly, may I add. Grass grows fast!)
Houses come with a lot of…living things.
Every other day I swear I have a stare down with a spider which I’m convinced IS COMING AFTER ME. Where the heck do they keep coming from?! Is there a nest?! That one looks like it could be poisonous. Some of them are huge, and IF I FIND ONE IN MY BED, I WILL SLEEP OUTSIDE. Okay maybe not, because there’s way more out there, but I may sleep in the shower. Except for there was this weird 1,000 leg crawly thing in there the other day.
More animal examples? There was a family of birds who nested on our front porch, which was sweet while it lasted, but now they’ve flown off and left a front porch covered in green bird poop. Doesn’t that make you just want to sit out there and enjoy a cup of coffee? Oh, joy!
And there are these fat squirrels who I’m at war with over our garbage can. Every time we put a bag in there, it’s like an entire team of 007 agents in squirrel form appear, and their only mission is to eat scraps and mock me as I shout “Get out of our trash!” from the window.
…I’m clearly still adjusting.
There are lots of resources to help tackle the learning curve.
Have no fear, my friends. Despite our learnings above, home ownership has been lovely. For us, it’s been such a cool feeling knowing that our little family has a happy haven to truly make our own. Is this our forever home? No. Is this perfect for us now? Yes!
If you’re like us and are ready to take the leap, the Michigan State Housing Development Authority (MSHDA) is a great resource that you should definitely check out! The organization provides homes and preserves places for the people of Michigan, and they offer many housing education classes through a statewide network to help people across the state prepare for homeownership. These education classes and one-on-one pre-purchase counseling services have been shown to benefit those who later become homeowners and improve the financial creditworthiness of those who did not. Be sure to check them out if you’re in the market!
Are you a homeowner? What were some of the biggest things you learned throughout the process? Any tips for buying a first home for others? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
Be sure to swing by the MSHDA website if you’re in the market for a home, particularly in Michigan. They have so many amazing resources to help you out in the process!
PS – Why I Love Calling Michigan “Home” + 10 Boho Home Decor Items We’re Loving
This post was sponsored by the Michigan State Housing Development Authority. However, all opinions are my own. Thank you for helping to support the brands that sponsor Isn’t That Charming!
