The Joys of Homeownership

Now our house fan has stopped working, and our home protection plan doesn’t cover it. The fan isn’t crucial—we also have central air and heat—but it’s just one more thing to go wrong with this darn house.

As I wait for the repair guy to show up so I can pay him $75 to clean the heater, I’m going to take this opportunity to remind myself of the joys of homeownership:

1) Ben has a yard. I shudder to think about trying to survive this fall in an apartment with a toddler. Many afternoons at around 5, it has been a lifesaver to let him play in the front yard.

2) If we get up at 6 or Ben starts having a screaming tantrum, we don’t have to worry about the people above, below, or on either side of us.

3) We don’t have to listen to other people’s noises either, or worry that the landlord will remodel a nearby apartment during the baby’s naptime.

4) No more juggling groceries and a baby across the parking lot and street, up the sidewalk, through the lobby, up the stairs, in the elevator, and down the hall.

5) No more smelling other people’s cooking in the hallways.

6) We have space to spread out. Instead of keeping our exercise bike in our living room, we now have it in the fitness corner of our basement. We have a TV room AND a living room.

7) We have a set of patio furniture and a deck, so if the mosquitoes ever die it will be pleasant to sit outside and read.

8) I finally feel like a grownup.

9) We no longer have to deal with our incompetent landlord.

10) We no longer throw our housing money away on rent. Every month, a tiny amount of what we pay gets added to our principal. If we stay here for another 29 years and 8 months (which, come Monday, is the exact amount of time I've been alive), we will actually own our house outright.

I’ll have to remind myself of this list each time I pull out my checkbook or swipe my debit card at Home Depot.