Not sure if this is just ingrained "American Dream" mentality but I want to get away from landlords and buy my own house. Partly this is so I can have my own space to work on my own projects, be messy, grow weed, walk around naked, etc. Lately this is looking like a real possibility since I've paid off my college debt and started saving money for a down payment. I'm also expecting house prices to fall in the next year as the economy implodes.

Despite all that, housing is still really expensive where I live and I probably wouldn't be able to afford a house without a partner or a roommate paying part of the mortgage. My romantic prospects aren't looking too good and I really don't want to be a landlord. And I don't know how I would feel buying a foreclosure. Not to mention I'd be locked into a 30 year mortgage that won't be paid off until after climate change has forced us all to migrate to Nunavut.

Tell me chapos, what's the moral thing to do here? Should I keep renting? Buy a house and try to be an "ethical" landlord? Move in with the next woman I meet after the 2nd date? Go join a commune/cult?

  • discontinuuity [he/him]
    ·
    4 years ago

    Not unless I want to live in the far exurbs and commute 90 minutes each way. Even a small house in the "bad" part of town is going to be expensive for my budget.

    The only way I could kinda justify having a roommate to help pay off my mortgage is if I charged them below market rate for rent. Not sure if that's valid or if I'm just wanting to justify it to myself.

      • discontinuuity [he/him]
        ·
        4 years ago

        Maybe. Last time I looked the HOA fees for a condo made it almost as expensive as a house

        • MirrorMadness [he/him]
          ·
          4 years ago

          yeah it'll depend on the condo. Keep in mind that the HoA fee isn't really like paying rent at all though, since that fee is used for services you directly benefit from such as exterminators, snow removal, cleaning, electricity/temperature in common areas, etc. That money is reinvested into your home, the downside is you don't have a choice about it.

          edit: unless you join the board of the HoA that is. Then you can taste real power

      • discontinuuity [he/him]
        ·
        4 years ago

        I could afford a mortgage by myself but it would be over 60% of my income. Right now I'm paying about 25% of my budget in rent, with a roommate. There's pretty much zero one-bedroom houses or condos in my city, so I could either have an extra bedroom for guests or rent it.

        I'm talking 90 minutes of driving. There's some public transit in my city but it doesn't reach the exurbs where houses are cheaper. If it was 60 minutes on a train I'd be happy to commute that distance.

        Not saying you're wrong about the ethical aspects tho