My intro is here:
http://forum.mrmoneymustache.com/welcome-to-the-forum/say-hi-and-introduce-yourself/msg1171044/#msg1171044This is just my second post. I've dug around and searched for a "home buying for dummies" post and can't find one, so here goes.
Hubby and I and our brood of 7 are going to be buying our first home in a few months. You can try to talk me out of it, but I am pretty certain it's the right move for our situation because:
- We are ONLY doing a 15 year fixed and will sock extra money at the mortgage to pay it off earlier
- We are putting 20% down to avoid PMI
- Housing costs total will be less than 25% of monthly take home
- We are minimalists and are intentionally underbuying - no McMansions thanks
- We will likely never need to relocate - hubby's business won't need to ever move and I work online (location independent), we have bioDad to visit and I also have elderly parents who will need care
- Houses in metro Atlanta are cheap and the taxes in the county we're looking at are low
- We are homeschool lifers and don't care about the school system
- Did I mention 7 kids? It's very hard to find a willing renter in the first place, and the stress of constantly worrying about every little ding the kids put in the walls is too much. If it's our own home, we can live with it or repaint.
- As a stepfamily we have a psychological need to establish a "home" base
- Kids want to be able to decorate/paint how they want etc
- Hubby's biz has a super high profit margin as does mine, so we pay a buttload of taxes even with all the dependents. We wrote a check to the government for $21K last April.
So.
What do you wish someone had told you about buying your first home? Is there a must-read book you can recommend?
Some obvious things you don't need to say (to save your time).
1) don't get emotionally attached until you move in
2) the bigger down payment the better
3) have an emergency fund for repairs since you won't be relying on a landlord
4) have the home inspected by a professional
5) ask about energy costs, don't want a house that's too inefficient
6) visit all times of day, get to know neighbors
7) location, location, location
What else?
This feels big, scary and very grown up so thanks in advance for any advice.
CW