But, here I am, wondering if it's time to get in.
On paper, it sounds stupid. I have only enough for a small down payment. My credit, while steadily improving, is less than stellar. My income is stable, but not the income of my husband who owns his own business.
But after a random conversation with our landlord (a real estate investor in our area - not exactly what we want to do), my husband and I started thinking about it.
Were we so convinced that we shouldn't buy a house that we'd blinded ourselves from actually making an informed decision?
With the soon-to-expire $8,000 first-time homeowner tax credit and a host of other incentives available in my area, I started to think that I was about to miss the boat.
Panic set in.
I called my husband, "Quick, send me a copy of our tax return - we're going to miss the credit!"
I started looking at listings online and calculating our estimated monthly payment. For a lot of the homes, all the credits would give us a mortgage payment that was lower than our rent.
We're we completely stupid?
Maybe. But, I was also wary of jumping into a huge financial comittment like buying a home just because a tax credit was about to expire.
I took a deep breath and started to really think about it. If I wanted to get that credit, I would have to have a bid on a house accepted in the next day or so... and then, only maybe would I close in time.
It wasn't realistic. Especially because a decision like this shouldn't be made based purely on the calculations on the back of an envelope. The calculations should be what make you start looking. Because you're not buying an investment (sure, it could go up in value - but we've all learned that it can also go down), you're buying a home. I didn't want to just buy a house that I could settle into for a few years, I wanted one I would be happy in. One I could call home. One I could start a family in.
So, I probably won't be dropping a down payment on a home anytime soon.
But, I think I will start looking. If anything, this little episode has taught me that you should always be aware of what's available for you. If I'd looked into this credit earlier, maybe I'd be in a house right now. Or, maybe I wouldn't. But, at least I'd have had all the information I needed to make the right decision.
And, you can bet, if that credit gets extended, I'll be crunching some numbers right away... and then, I'll crunch some more... and then, I might make my move. But, no faster than that. This isn't a decision to be made lightly.
** I'm proud to announce that this post has been selected for the Carnival of Money Stories. Be sure to check out the other great blog posts that are part of this carnival!
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