Kaye's Days

One of the things I always said I’d do is buy a house when I’m able to. There are a few reasons for this. Growing up, we had to move every year and it seemed like there was always a problem with the landlord. My mom was also on some kind of assistance (and still is) and she tended not to get along with anyone in our buildings, so that probably contributed to our annual move too. The point is I hate moving and I don’t want to live under a landlord’s thumb for the rest of my life.

However, I’ve learned some things I didn’t know before deciding that. For starters, a lot of houses have an HOA (homeowner’s association). From what I’ve read, an HOA is like a landlord for a group of houses. They tell homeowners what is and isn’t allowed. And it can be rather ridiculous.

Take this story about a family who was sued by an HOA over a pink playhouse for example. Apparently, neighbors complained about the color and it was stated the grandmother, who built the playhouse, should’ve had the color approved first. My reaction was “WTF?!?” These people have issues if they get up in arms over the color of a playhouse for a four-year-old.

I’m sure not all HOAs are ridiculous like that, but my point is I would not want to live in a place with silly regulations like that. Sure, a landlord technically has the same power, but I’m almost certain that as long as I don’t paint the walls, no landlord will care what colors my possessions are.

I have also heard that it’s much harder to move out of a house than an apartment. Someone told me to make sure I plan to live there for at least ten years because selling a house is difficult (no surprise). While I never want to have to move after I leave my grandfather’s house, I would want to have the choice. I don’t want to be trapped.

Also, one of the reasons I wanted to buy a house was I wanted a lot of space. I wanted to make a little office/technology room for myself and create a walk-in closet too. But now that I think about it, I could probably do that with an apartment. It might be smaller than a house would be, but I could make it work.

Let’s say I got a two-bedroom apartment. Since I’m by myself, I’d only need one of the two bedrooms to sleep in, leaving a free room. I could use that room for my walk-in closet. I couldn’t install wooden racks on the walls, but I could use the metal, clothing ones with wheels. I could put mirrors around and if there are no windows (not that I’d want people to see me getting dressed!), I could buy some stylish lamps.

As for the technology room, I could make that out of the living room. If I still wanted a small office, I could simply choose an area of the living room for that. If I had more books than I have now and needed a little library, I could section out a corner for a bookshelf. Or make one out of the pantry!

When I think about it and read over this, wanting to buy a house seems silly now. I didn’t give every reason here, but I gave the main one. I don’t think all houses are under HOAs, but it seems good amount are. And if I can be resourceful, why not stick with an apartment? I don’t have to be like my mom. I could pull myself over the poverty line, try to get along with people and live within my means.

Maybe I’ll want a house when I get past 30 or 40, but I’ll say for now: I don’t want one.