This post is about everything I learned in one year of owning a house.
I can’t believe I’m saying this, but it has been one year since my husband and I bought our FIRST HOUSE. Woo-hoo!
Looking back on this past year is a whirlwind. There are so many things that I learned and experienced that were totally new for me, and I’m sure are or will be for you too.
Owning a home is kind of a BIG DEAL. A lot comes with it and I’ve learned some very important lessons that I want to share with those of you who maybe just bought a house or are looking to buy one soon.
This post is everything I learned in one year of owning a house.
Everything I Learned In One Year Of Owning A House:
1. Don’t Overpay For A House
That sounds obvious, but when you’re house shopping and it’s hard not to fall in love with pricier homes. That’s what we did.
On paper, we could afford it, but a year later looking back, I wish we would have waited for a cheaper house.
Did you know your monthly mortgage can increase on you just like that? Just because your mortgage was one thing when you signed the papers, does not mean you’re locked in for life. Taxes increase, insurance increases… We’re paying about $300 more per month than when we closed on our house a year ago.
I learned to purchase cheaper than you think you can afford. It’s not worth the stress.
2. Have Multiple Sources Of Income
The job you have now and the money you make is not guaranteed forever. Any one of us can lose their job like that or have a serious injury that prevents us from working. If you’re a business owner, trends can drastically change overnight and you can be out thousands of dollars.
I’ve learned it’s good to not put all your eggs in one basket. The economy has taken a hit this past year and a lot of businesses are struggling to stay afloat.
My husband’s business was flourishing better than it ever has when we bought our house. Then all of a sudden, it feels like right after we signed the papers, the market crashed and our income took a big hit.
Having multiple sources of income (passive income, side hustles, etc) is a great way to protect yourself from the unknown.
A house is a very big purchase, and it’s wise to go in prepared.
3. Trust Your Husband
Initially when we found our dream house, I was SO excited! I told all my friends and family we were getting this house. Last minute, my husband decided it was too expensive and backed out.
I LOST IT.
I was so mad at him for getting my hopes up, letting me tell all my family and friends we were getting my dream house and then crushing my dreams.
Things were pretty rocky between us, but eventually I came around and decided I need to support my husband.
And let me tell you! I’m SO glad I did!
About a week or so later, our real estate agent called me and told me the sellers still want to sell the house to us. They said “name your price”! ….WHAT?!!
Keep in mind, this is coming out of the craziest year of the housing market when people were bidding $20-50k OVER asking price, and they’re telling us “name your price”?!
Yep.
So we ended up getting a much better deal on the house. My husband felt way better about it. And it’s a good thing we waited because like I said earlier, our business took a hit shortly after closing on the house.
Moral of the story – trust your husband!
4. You Need A Lot Of Things
Owning a home is a lot different from living in an apartment. At an apartment, you have people who mow the grass, keep up the maintenance, etc. When you own a house, ALL responsibility falls on you.
We quickly realized we need a lot of things, for starters…a lawn mower! But it didn’t end there.
I can’t tell you how many trips we’ve taken to Home Depot and Lowes this year…and I really don’t want to think about how much money we’ve spent there either. THOUSANDS.
5. Furniture Is Expensive
We went from a two-bedroom apartment to a four-bedroom house. After moving all of our stuff in, we realized there is A LOT of space, and we need more furniture.
When you buy a house, you’re likely putting a hefty down payment, so money will likely be tight.
The cost of furniture can get overlooked, but don’t, because it’s pretty important.
Thankfully there are affordable furniture stores like Wayfair, Walmart and Target…which is where I bought most of my furniture. But try to keep that budget in mind when choosing the house you purchase and on deciding your down payment amount.
6. Upgrades And Repairs Are Expensive
Oh, you thought it stops with furniture? Hah!
I never had to know how much a painter costs before, or where to get a handyman and how much they charge.
I do now! And it’s not cheap 😅.
Please budget this in too before buying a house, there will be lots of projects and it’s never ending. That brings me to my next point…
7. Owning A House Is A Life-Long Project – A FUN One!
You will NEVER be done working on your home. It truly is a never-ending project.
I actually love it though. I love making improvements and watching my home evolve. Just know, it does take money.
Sometimes I think about all the trips we could have taken with the money we’ve spent on our house, so just calculate according to your life-style and budget how much you want to put into your house over the years.
8. Owning A House Is A Lot Of Work
So we got our lawn mower and our power tools, now the work begins! We have spent countless hours outside throughout the year working on the yard and garden.
I also wasn’t prepared for how much cleaning there is! An apartment is easy, it’s so small. But a house is wayyyy bigger and a lot more ground to cover.
Thankfully I have a wonderful husband who helps me clean. I don’t know what I’d do without him.
9. There’s A Lot To Learn
As with anything new, when you buy your first house, you’re entering a whole new world and that comes with a lot of learning.
If you want to paint the walls, you have to figure out where to find a painter. For landscaping projects, turns out there’s not one company you call. There’s several different companies who specialize in different things. Lawn care is one thing, excavating is another, etc.
You’ll find there are a ton of different types of tools to get different jobs done. We learned through trial and error what works and what doesn’t.
Our flower and vegetable garden was a whole other world we had to learn about. Make sure you do plenty of research on the types of plants you wish to grow before buying them. You’d be surprised how particular some plants can be. You also need to learn what type of fertilizer to get, how often to fertilize, learn about water filters and watering, etc.
And then even down to the little things like cleaning products. The stores will try to sell you a product for everything. I eventually learned what types of products I needed and which ones I didn’t. I wrote a post about the cleaning products I use here.
10. Once You Become A Homeowner, Everyone Wants To Sell You Something
I learned this the hard way. I was shopping at Home Depot to look at paint options, and someone who looked like an employee approached me and asked if I was a homeowner.
Mistakenly I said yes 😩.
Long story short, I ended up with a guy coming to my house to test our water. They talked to me like it was free and that I’d get a Home Depot gift card just for them coming to my house to test the water! And they said it’d only take an hour.
Well 3 HOURS later! This guy is in our kitchen, forcing us to sit and pay attention to everything he says and does, and tries to sell us this $7,000+ water purification system!
When my husband said no, he became very mean and aggressive, and it was hard to get him to leave.
Lesson learned 🫠.
11. Cleaning Doesn’t Have To Be Dreadful
While it IS a big house, I have learned to enjoy cleaning.
It helps that my husband is so good about helping me, but regardless, there’s something about cleaning YOUR house.
In an apartment, you don’t actually own anything, so there’s no pride of ownership. But I’ve found that having a house makes me more motivated to keep it clean and keep it looking nice. This is MY investment for crying out loud! 😂
That sense of pride and ownership will motivate you to keep everything nice and in good shape (especially since you have to pay for it if it breaks or gets ruined).
12. The Joys Of Hosting
I rarely hosted anything when I lived in an apartment. I always wanted to, but it just always felt too small, and I wasn’t comfortable doing it much.
Now that we have a house, hosting is so much easier. I’ve learned a lot about preparing for parties and managing my time well to make sure I’m not too busy to enjoy my guests. It’s been a learning curve, but a good one!
13. Neighbors Can Be Friends
The thing I absolutely love about our neighborhood is everyone is so friendly. I know not everyone ends up in a neighborhood like that, but it’s worth noting that neighbors can be your friends.
It does take effort on your part to connect with neighbors, even for us. We decided to go on walks a lot, and by doing that, we were able to meet several of our neighbors.
We threw a house warming party and invited our neighbors, too, which they really appreciated. Most of them weren’t able to make it though.
It took us a year, but we finally just invited our neighbors to our house for food and games. We ended up not playing any games because we were just talking the whole time!
You don’t just magically become friends with your neighbors. A lot of times, you need to initiate and make the first step.
This was everything I learned in one year of owning a house.
Other Posts You May Like:
8 Things I Wish I Knew Before Buying A House
Top 15 Things You Need To Know Before Buying Your First Home
New Home Checklist | 13 Things You Need To Do Before Moving Into Your New House