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Beyond the "Bubble"
Smart Home Buying (and Selling)
in an Age of Hype
in an Age of Hype
Tyson offers a few tips to help you do just that, no matter which side of the (white picket) fence you're standing on:
First, be sure you really want to buy and aren't succumbing to peer pressure.
If you're a relatively young renter, you may have the impression that home ownership is the "grown-up" choice. Nonsense, Tyson says. Buying a home is a personal choice and it isn't necessarily the path to fun. In fact, as he and his co-author point out in Home Buying for Dummies, a study by Peter Rossi and Eleanor Weber of the University of Massachusetts found the following:
- Homeowners are less social, on average, than renters – spending less time with friends, neighbors and co-workers.
- Homeowners spend more time on household chores.
- Perhaps for the preceding reasons, renters have more sex and less marital discord, and cope better with parenting than homeowners do!
"None of this is meant to suggest that you shouldn't buy a home," Tyson says. "But do consider the impact that the increased responsibility will have on your lifestyle."
On the other hand, don't underestimate the financial benefits of homeownership.
For most people, owning actually is less expensive than renting. Obviously, there are tax benefits. The IRS and most state governments allow you to deduct, within certain limits, mortgage interest and property taxes when 
you file your annual income tax return. And generally speaking, the value of a home appreciates as the years go by, turning your home into a "forced savings account" that you'll be glad for in the future.