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We didn't initially necessarily expect our first home to be a forever home, we were just so excited and amazed at having such a beautiful vintage house and garden with so much potential for what was the exact average price of a house in the city the year in which we bought it.
Years on we appreciated the stability of the neighborhood and its inhabitants- our octogenarian neighbors completely happy and settled in their similar, modest but sweet house. We made improvements to the now 89 y.o. house, captured some undeveloped space to make the small house live large with seven rooms and three baths, and witnessed a pretty amazing gentrification of the neighborhood beyond our wildest dreams as well as a constantly improving already very nice city just down the hill next to the ocean.
Now, twenty years on this month, we cannot imagine a better place or house to live in and very much hope to live out the rest of our days here and eventually die here in our sleep as the neighbors did, never having had any home help at all, at the ages of 96 and 89.
It's not a completely perfect place, but it's close enough so for us.
The couple I bought my home built it in 1957 and were in their late 80's when it came time to sell...
My neighbors also built their homes or had them built... next door 96 lives alone and still drives, across the street 100 and lives with 90 year old boy friend... next to them is a couple in their mid 80's and next to them is my neighbor that passed away at home at 104... I went to her 100 birthday bash and it was a privilege... she was born on a ranch in Genoa Nevada and at 16 became the sole teacher in a one room school house and taught for 55 years... a lot of her former students showed up at her party... she still was flying to her Maui Condo alone up to age 101...
Amazing people that all welcomed me... so what if my property tax is 5x what they pay... I fully intend to be in their shoes in 40 or 50 years...
The couple I bought my home built it in 1957 and were in their late 80's when it came time to sell...
My neighbors also built their homes or had them built... next door 96 lives alone and still drives, across the street 100 and lives with 90 year old boy friend... next to them is a couple in their mid 80's and next to them is my neighbor that passed away at home at 104... I went to her 100 birthday bash and it was a privilege... she was born on a ranch in Genoa Nevada and at 16 became the sole teacher in a one room school house and taught for 55 years... a lot of her former students showed up at her party... she still was flying to her Maui Condo alone up to age 101...
Amazing people that all welcomed me... so what if my property tax is 5x what they pay... I fully intend to be in their shoes in 40 or 50 years...
Sweet!
I like to say there is some mighty good juju about a place when everybody stays and lives so long in. Grab it and be a part of it!
I now hopefully am living in my forever home. I purchased it in 2014 with the intention that this will be my last home. All the essential living areas are on one floor and there is a guest suite upstairs in case I need live-in help in the future.
we buy with the intention of living in it for a very long time, forever home or not.
what I don't understand is the mindset that houses are as disposable or temporary as paper plates. for example somebody who just bought a brand new million dollar house stating well they wish they could move to ____ (another state) maybe they will soon, or another person stating they don't intend on being around the area longer than 5 years but looking to buy.
It costs $$$ to buy and sell, why not just rent then?
I like to say there is some mighty good juju about a place when everybody stays and lives so long in. Grab it and be a part of it!
I've wondered about it myself...
All of these neighbors were born and raised on farms/ranches... Montana, Utah, Nevada, Northern California... maybe ranch stock is just more hardy overall?
We all settled in East Oakland California... how is that for a juxtaposition?
They all have lived in their homes 55 to 60 years which means they moved to their forever homes in their 40's?
For me to move it means finding the perfect home for my vehicle collection... instead of having them scattered around everywhere and not being able to fully enjoy them.
Ten years ago we bought our "retirement" home (from the original owner) in a super neighborhood with a good number of "original" owners still occupying homes. Our best friends lived across the street and they had bought there many years earlier. The house is not cookie cutter, but it was built in the early 70's so in the first couple of years we did about $40K in updates. Well 10 years later we are about to be empty nesters, our best friends lost everything in the economic downturn and had to move to another state to be near family about 5 years ago. The neighborhood suffered a little as well with quite a few foreclosures from people losing their jobs but in the last couple of years it has stabilized.
We actually bought another "summer" home about 100 miles north two years ago to be in the cooler (but not the colder, snowy) weather and we have decided to sell our current home because we find it too big and too much work to maintain the huge yard (10,000+ sq ft lot). We also realize our children have families and responsibilities of their own so we don't ask them to help very often. We love to travel and want to do much more of it. We are even considering doing the RV thing again because we really enjoyed it before and soon will have more time for it.
This is actually the longest I have ever lived in a home other than the one I grew up in as a kid. Most people of my generation were brought up in a life of security, conformity, and conservatism. Our children however, have grown up with incredible advances in medicine, technology and the sciences so it has become the norm that people are more willing to adapt to change in order to thrive. We can only control our personal lives and actions to a certain extent before exterior forces influence those personal actions.
SO THE ANSWER TO YOUR QUESTION, JayInCA IS YES!!!! Also, being a Realtor®, I see buyers all the time who are looking for their "forever" home. That is for today, anyway.
“Life is a series of natural and spontaneous changes. Don't resist them; that only creates sorrow. Let reality be reality. Let things flow naturally forward in whatever way they like.”
― Lao Tzu
I've lived in my current house for almost 30 years. I plan to be here a long time yet. I don't ever see myself leaving my house, so yes, this is my forever home. Yes, it's big...4 bedrooms and almost 3,000 square feet and just me, but it's great to have the space, especially when my adult kids come back to visit.
In this day and age, I notice people talking about resale value. More people buying houses and looking at them as investments instead of as a place to live out the rest of their lives.
The home has become a 'temporary' place. I do understand that job situations change which require a move and military families that change locations frequently.
I guess the title of the the thread is my question: Does anyone buy their house to be their forever home?
A lot of our parents bought their house and lived in them for life. Raised their families and welcomed grandchildren's visits in them. Is that something that only happens in small towns anymore?
Edit: made the thread in the wrong forum. I've reported and asked to be moved to the House forum. Oops!
I'm looking for one, unfortunately. I say unfortunately, since that means the purchase is all the more important, and the requirements really ARE requirements. Others can put their wishes aside, because they'll only be there for a few years, so no big deal. For me, it's a very big deal.
I am dismayed at the number of houses that haven't been maintained properly because it seems the people living there knew they'd be moving on, so didn't spend a penny on them. Not a tree planted, the broken dishwasher not fixed, the stains in the tub not removed. Don't they understand that such a house will not bring the same $ as the house down the street that has been maintained? It's so frustrating, as I view these overpriced, non-maintained homes that need thousands of dollars of work just to make them presentable and liveable. Greed. I watch the houses languish on the market, as the sellers inch down their price over months, until, finally, the house is removed from the market or it sells far below the original asking price. Greed and ignorance, I guess.
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