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This gets to the heart of the article linked by the OP; people are making the decision to 'drive until you qualify', not fully cognizant of the true cost that a long commute has on one's quality of life. You might have an amazing spread of land way out there, but you're never going to see it in daylight for days at a time. The precious few social interactions you'll have outside of the home will be at work; you might get a couple of those friends to come out to visit once or twice a year. Work becomes your life. Your work day may only be 8, maybe 9, hours at the office, but then add on half that time for the travel. Your day is done. No errands can be done, unless they can wait for the weekend, or you do them right after leaving the office.
I know this first-hand; I did a 150-mile round trip 4 or 5 days a week for over 10 years. We're talking close to half a million miles driven in all that time.
I truly don't begrudge someone wanting to live the best of both those worlds. Good luck to them. But I do implore those people to think things through beyond just the lower mortgage payment. BTW, keep a cooler in your car so that any frozen food you buy in town doesn't thaw completely by the time you get home.
"Drive until you qualify" is supposed to be a major pejorative. I don't get it. Where are people supposed to live? Rents in chi-chi areas are high too. What is the alternative?
"Drive until you qualify" is supposed to be a major pejorative. I don't get it. Where are people supposed to live? Rents in chi-chi areas are high too. What is the alternative?
The "drive until you qualify" situations I'm familiar with are seeking a larger home for the $. Or larger lot size unavailable closer in. So the alternative would be smaller or less nice home closer in.
The "drive until you qualify" situations I'm familiar with are seeking a larger home for the $. Or larger lot size unavailable closer in. So the alternative would be smaller or less nice home closer in.
Here's one definition:
"A phrase used by real estate agents whereby potential homebuyers travel away from the workplace until they reach a com- munity in which they can afford to buy a home that meets their standards.
“The size of the wallet determines that of the mortgage, and therefore the length of the commute. Although there are other variables (schools, spouse, status, climate, race, religion, taxes, taste) and occasional exceptions (inner cities, Princeton), in this equation you’re trading time for space, miles for square feet.” 1
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