The Case for Hipster Homeowners

My husband and I, like many other millenials, have long had the dream of getting the frick out of dodge, making like a tree and leafing, hitting the road. We also share an altruistic vision of sharing our monetary goods with other people and all working together in close, sustainable living.

This attitude is pervasive in our age group—to not want to be tied down or locked into a job; whether it originated in our quest for independence or just a lack of ability to secure a stable, long-term career path. For many of us, the image of a white picket fence only generates a feeling of disgust and evokes images of a life devoted to material things as opposed to experiences. But homeownership doesn’t have to be that way.

Home values are on the rise—making them once again a good, solid investment for our hard-earned cash. Moreover, this is all good news for the otherwise beleaguered millennial facing a world of doom. The economy is going to need millenials to start buying homes; however, this need is coupled with banks still hesitant to remove many of the restrictions on issuing loans leaves us in the lurch. In order to motivate us to launch ourselves over the many hurdles toward home ownership, society’s got some sweet-talking to do.

Rather than trying to court millenials by arguing for the benefits of stability or why the vision we seek is childish or short-sighted, I would urge society to, instead, show us how this long-term investment can help us achieve our vision of a well-traveled, generous individual. That’s what my husband and I set out to do two years ago when we bought our first home.

The benefits of owning a house don’t have to come with sacrificing your independence or mobility, and can actually help establish a space for building a more cooperative, sustainable brand of living. Having a mortgage means having regular payments, but with the housing market also looking up, it opens up chance to capitalize on the investment made in your home through home equity loans or home equity lines of credit and give you a more stable way to pay off your debt.

Consolidating our credit card and student loan debt at a significantly lower rate liberated us from the shackles of debt. Even though it might end up costing us more in the long run, lowering the interim monthly payment, and not having our debt tied up at the whims of a credit card company can brought us peace of mind.

It also frees up funds for other adventures and exploits. Additionally, we found out that even just having a home can make you a destination for adventure. My husband and I weren’t able to comfortably host people via couch surfing while we were still cooped up in our tiny studio apartment, no matter how pretty it was, but it was something we always wanted to do.

We invested in a small house that needed some tender love and care, but we soon had a great space for hosting people from all around the world. We’ve been able to host new friends from China, Kyrgyzstan, Germany, Macedonia, and many other countries, learning new recipes and making connections elsewhere.

We also renovated our back yard into a productive (sometimes overly productive) community garden, inviting the neighbors to chip in and participate. Being responsible for a whole plot of land, albeit a little plot, gave us a new appreciation for hard work and sustainable living, and we are enjoying the fruits of our labors year round.

As we look forward, we haven’t put off our hopes of travel indefinitely—we’re just reimagining them, incorporating our house into the mix. Exploring the option of renting our out house for the duration of our travels is an enticing idea at this juncture, giving us both the possibility of a home base and additional funding so we don’t get saddled with debt.

Reimagining what settling meant to us required us to put a few of our dreams on hold, but the skills we gained in exchange far outweighed the drawbacks we experienced. We have a great network of friends and are always able to help out a friend if they are down on their luck.