Semi-Personal Less Ranting Post

So this post isn't so much of a rant as a mental spill. I recently purchased a home with an FHA 203K rehab loan. This means that while the house is already mine and I have the keys I will not yet be able to move in for at least another month due to repairs and upgrades being made on the house.

The timing in buying a house might seem strange to some but my thoughts are as follows:

First (and foremost) I've been renting for years, giving my hard-earned money to someone else to pay their mortgage or line their pockets, and now that I'm fairly certain I've found a place I'll want to remain long term it just doesn't make sense (I had been moving frequently from community to community and even state to state over recent years).

Second, while some may argue the case that when my job is not 100% stable I shouldn't be investing in a home ... my counter is this: NO job is EVER 100% stable, no matter what it is something can go wrong. In addition, I will have to come up with the money to pay housing expenses somehow, whether it be rent or a mortgage it has to be paid (especially seeing as I have a child to support), so I may as well be building equity.

Thirdly, the housing market where I live has pretty much hit rock-bottom, mortgage rates are extremely low due to the hard economy, if you can qualify for a mortgage now's the time to get one.

And lastly, the market being as low as it is and the economy relying so excessively on the housing market right now is the PERFECT reason to buy now, I get the recently passed tax break for purchasing a home in the down economy and get the feel good of doing my small bit to help lift the flagging housing market by buying one of the millions of foreclosed homes on the market.

In addition to all of these perfectly viable and arguable reasons for buying now the most important is that I'm reaching the point in my life where I'd like to be able to do my own thing with my own place. I'm sick of white rental walls, give me some COLOR. I want to be able to HANG pictures on my wall and not worry about what the fucking landlord is going to say about the holes. I want to hang a fruit basket from my kitchen ceiling. I want to be able to get the most energy efficient appliances and be truly in control of my own utilities rather than doing my damnedest to lower my utilities despite the leaky windows and 20 year old appliances in the rental I'm in at any given time. And, as stupid as it may sound to some, if my fucking sink breaks I want to be able to dive under the cabinet and FIX it not call someone else and have to wait until they can send someone over.

So I guess this means I'm ready to own a home, and the private back yard will be wonderful for the kid and the dog, they can't get enough run-around time in the commons at a rental. And thus, I dive headfirst into the foray of home ownership in the middle of a period where so many people are losing that privilege, wish me luck.