Home Buying, Buy what You Need, Not What You Want

A top of the line home with all of the best amenities signals quality and success. It paints a picture of ourselves that we would love the rest of the world to see. This leads many people who are shopping for a home to over extend themselves buying more home than they really need and assuming more debt than they can afford. Beyond the debt incurred with a mortgage, many other expenses are often overlooked in the pursuit of owning a dream home.

The maintenance costs of a more expensive home will be higher. Many top of the line amenities come with an associated periodic, you could even say chronic, maintenance cost. The alarm system has a monthly fee. The swimming pool must be maintained whether you use it or not.

In more expensive the homes the amenities will also be more expensive. These will necessitate higher costs for repairs. Just as it will cost you more to have your Ferrari tuned than it will to have you Honda tuned, it will cost more to have a specialty appliance or feature in your dream home worked on too. Fewer people are trained and specialized in working on the higher end equipment.

There will be higher property taxes associated with more expensive properties. Swimming pools, tennis courts, and out buildings will add to these tax expenses as well.
Many upscale homes carry even more costs in dues and fees to homeowner associations. These associations may also have rules and regulations that will obligate you to spend money on items you would not otherwise spend your money on.

Look for opportunities to get the things you need covered first. You may need a certain number of bedrooms for your growing family. You may need an extra bathroom to make everyone's life better, but maybe it's a luxury, not a need. You have to make the judgment call on things like this. You may be able to save costs on certain needs for your new home by purchasing in a second or third choice neighborhood. Older neighborhoods can offer lower home prices with the basics you need.

Remember that you can always trade up later if your needs change or grow, and with the money you save by foregoing the wants now, you may be able to finance as renovations for less later.

So before you go in and sign the real estate forms to make an offer on that dream home, take some time to think about what you really need.