subject: Is Owning Your Own Home as Important as it Once Was? [print this page] Is Owning Your Own Home as Important as it Once Was?
There was a time when owning your own property was the ultimate goal. Having a home to call your own came with a sense of accomplishment, pride and security that was unmatched by anything else in life. As an added bonus to the 'feel good' aspect of home ownership was the fact that buying property was a sound investment move as national housing prices rose annually for more than 60 consecutive years.
Enter 2010, where close to 17 million homeowners owe more than their homes are worth, and the numbers of foreclosures are rapidly increasing (588,000 in 2008).With these types of numbers, and little hope on the horizon for a speedy recovery.... is owning your home really such a good idea? Owning a home is still a priority for many Americans; however, it is no longer considered a safe asset class in regards to being an investment.
In 1945, real estate in the nation was positioned with a balance of 15.9% debt vs. 84.1% equity. By 2005 the debt ratio had risen to 40.1%, and by 2009 that figure had skyrocketed to 61%. According to these figures 'pride in ownership' seems to be the only benefit from owning your own home and it is no surprise that almost half of the population no longer believe that owning a home is a way of building wealth.
For some, the allure of home ownership goes beyond an investment opportunity, as one homeowner states, "I never looked at my primary residence as an investment. I wanted a place to live, and I didn't want to rent from someone else, so buying a home fulfilled those needs. And it's probably safe to assume that 30 years from now I could sell it for a profit, but of course I would be right back at the beginning with no place to live so it really is more of an expense than an investment anyway". This homeowner will likely enjoy many years in her home, and so long as she is comfortable with her mortgage payments, fluctuations in the market will have no affect on her.
For the more financially conscientious, or should I say uptight, this type of thinking is unheard of. To them real estate is an investment; and investments need returns. These are the folks that are joining the ever-increasing ranks of homeowners who are walking away from their 'bad investments'.
