It’s been my family’s experience that the first house you buy isn’t ideal. The second house my parents bought was much closer to ideal, although not all the way there. And there were a couple of decades in between the purchases. She’s doing well to have a house at all nowadays.
She would have been smarter to buy an apartment to stsrt. Pay that off and then go buy a house.
My first house was ideal for us at the time. It was a small starter home that needed lots of work which I did myself. I learned how to sweat pipe, repair walls, run electrical circuits, be a good painter etc. Our second house was better and larger.
Our third and current home was purchased in 2010 after Governess Jenny Granholm (yea, her) ran us and a million others out of michigan due to her failed policies.
Back to a small starter size home because we had no money to buy a bigger one.
I refuse to be house poor so I’m happy with what I have. I’ll neve4 live in an ideal home but I don’t care.
We are now in our 3rd and final home until either death or need to go into a nursing home. After all these years as a home owner, my suggestion to 1st time home buyers is to quickly learn carpentry, dry wall and muddying, and electrical. I would also suggest latching on to an older person and ask to be taught these skills. I did this with my father-in-law when we bought our first house. His wisdom was a deal maker in our marriage. Not only did I Lear those skills, it made me a calmer, more understanding Christian husband.
In west central New Jersey buyers were coming out from New York City, making cash offers over ask and waiving inspections. It was crazy. Decent properties that had been priced at $800-900,000 before the pandemic, were selling like hotcakes for $1,000,000 ++++++.
Prices have calmed a bit but anything nice with at least an acre is still bringing $1,000,000+ with multiple offers.