Another great reason to buy a home in Tyler in this economy is that home ownership is still an attractive option compared to renting. With the super low interest rates your house payment is definitely cheaper than what you would pay in rent for a comparable house – even after including insurance and tax escrows.
“Well, Claudia, what about maintenance expenses that I don’t have if I rent”, you ask. You can even manage that with ease by getting a Residential Service Contract (commonly called a Home Warranty) where you pay a service call and the covered items are repaired at the expense of the warranty company. You must get the premium warranty in order for it to be the most comprehensive and you must renew it each year, but it’s a great way to manage your maintenance expenses.
You must also consider that buying a home is not just for a financial reason. You are buying shelter and a lifestyle – not really an investment. The days of buying a home and counting on it appreciating in value to the point that you can use your equity like an ATM are probably over for quite some time. You should plan on living in it 3 to 7 years in order to get your down payment back after paying all of your selling expenses. Buying a home can still be a good investment if it is highly rentable. If it is in a highly desirable area and you can get a great price on it at today’s ultra low interest rates, you could make hundreds of dollars per month positive cash flow.
Also, if you buy, the home is yours to do with as you want. You can have pets – as many as the city ordinance will allow – and not have to pay an additional pet deposit or higher rent payment. You can paint rooms any color you want! You can hang as many pictures as you want! You can plant a garden, wash your car in the driveway, swim in your pool after 10 pm, use your gas grill on the patio! It is yours! Enjoy it!
