One of the biggest drivers of the American economy is the purchase of a home. The housing industry employs so many different people… who all ‘generally’ pay taxes and they in-turn invest what they make into other sectors of the economy. And, there are the indirect costs of home ownership that include everything from furniture, durable goods, building materials, utilities and tax revenues. Buying a home is more than just getting a place to live. 

If you’ve saved up for a solid downpayment on a home… that’s great. But before you plunk that money down; think about a few more things that you may need to spend on.

Do you have enough furniture to fill the house? If you will be taking care of your own yard do you have tools like a mower, trimmer and hedge clippers? How about buying plants, fertilizer and landscape mulch? That’s some of it… you may want to paint a room, add some throw rugs and add a ceiling fan. But before you get to the décor – do you have a vacuum, brooms, cleaning materials, a washing machine and dryer?

You may be able to do without all of these things immediately… but you can see how quickly these things add up – and they are all expenses that go beyond just a down payment, closing and moving costs. At a minimum – you’ll have ongoing mortgage payments, property taxes, potential HOA fees, insurance and maintenance costs. 

I encourage anyone who has the financial ability to buy property – to go ahead and do it. But if you go into it without considering all costs… you may find that you’re in over your head and you could potentially end up losing everything that you’ve put into the home. 

One strategy may be to begin accruing things you’ll need like a washer and dryer and furniture before you buy. Then you can use any excess income to apply towards an emergency maintenance fund.

Questions?