In The Market For A New House? A couple options

In America, we’re conditioned to think more is better. This philosophy when applied to housing has led to so many oversize houses being built that they’re referred to as “McMansions” nowadays. But how much house do we need? A better question is “How much house is best for us?” A story I saw this week illustrates this point very well…

I was watching the Colbert Report the other day on Comedy Central, and a certain segment got me thinking. It’s a new segment called “Colbert Platinum” for millionaires only(!), and in the segment this week the trusty host Stephen featured the richest man in India (Mukesh Ambani) who is building a $1 billion dollar house. It will be 60 stories tall and feature a 3 story garage to hold his 168 cars.

Contrast this to many of the “houses” I visited in the Philippines as a missionary. You walked down a 4-5 foot wide alley to get to people’s homes- with sewage running beneath you- and entered houses that were 10′ by 15′ or so. They were made out of a combination of cement and sheetmetal (usually scrap metal from a junkyard), and oftentimes you’d have a small wall dividing the houses into two rooms- one as kitchen/bathroom and the other as living room/dining room/ bedroom.

“New Home! New Life!” is what the sign says- it’s at the entrance to a typical poor barrio in the Philippines.

These are obviously two extreme examples; they are both instructive. First, everyone with running water and electricity in the developed world should consider themselves prosperous- if you’re reading this then I’m talking about you and me.

If you don’t feel prosperous or you feel “poor” in some ways, I suggest going to the nearest Third World country and living among the poor people for 2-3 days as they live. Your perspective will change very quickly. If you have kids, seriously consider taking them with you and they will learn to stop complaining about not having EVERY toy they want. That’s what happened to me at the age of 10 at least.

Second, it is not my place nor yours to “judge” Mr. Ambani, the Indian billionaire. It is only God’s place to judge men. The splendor of his mansion I’m sure will inspire many to live fuller, richer lives. He will employ hundreds of local people to maintain and care for his house. And of course it will be awesome to be invited to hang out in his house- if you’re a car guy like me I’m sure you’d like to check out his garage.

At the same time, I’m sure a house of that magnitude will come with equally-as-big headaches of maintenance. I have a regular sized house in a U.S. suburb and don’t like dealing with fixing stuff or taking care of the yard- just thinking of handling the details of a house that size gives me a headache.

So, what can we take away from the 2 examples above? First, know that you are already more rich and prosperous than you often think; take a moment to be thankful for that. Second, know that you can achieve your goals and get your dream house one day. Don’t be afraid to re-think exactly what IS your dream home and accurately assess how much of a home you want to deal with. I like the idea of having 1-2 houses (a main residence and a vacation house), and joining a luxury time-share club where you can stay at cool houses all over the world when you travel. You get the benefits of high-end homeownership without all the hassles.

If you’re in the U.S. and you’re about to buy a new house, find out who your top local real estate agent is (or go to a local REIA- Real Estate Investor Association- and find the top 2 investors in your area) and buy a house for 70 cents on the dollar or less. Unless you’re in an ultra-hot real estate market, this shouldn’t be too hard to do. Put that 30% equity in your pocket! If buying directly from the seller, you can even legally get cash back at the closing table or have your down payment paid for you; check out http://www.TheGiftProgram.com for details.

Now go out and start shopping for your $1 billion dollar house!! (or less if you prefer)