Taking the leap into home ownership isn't for the weak

People buy houses every day.

It's not as if the process is mysterious and spooky. Realtors aren't in their offices shaking rattles around vats of chicken blood in order to get a good market price for a home in some ancient voodoo ceremony. Or, if they do, they're really good at hiding the fact.

So, if the process is routine, why is it that I feel like I've just signed away my life?

I've been a renter for nearly seven years now. In the past I could justify renting because I always wanted an "out" in case I decided to take a job somewhere else besides Dodge City. I wanted to be free to pick up and go when I pleased. No strings attached.

But, I have yet to get the urge to move from my current career. I like my job. I'm okay with living in town. I'm at peace here. I've put down roots.

It just made sense, therefore, to go ahead and take the plunge into home ownership.

Or, so I thought when I started this whole process.

Right now, I'm in the middle of negotiations on a cute little bungalow in the middle of a cute little neighborhood in the center of Dodge City. It's got a basement, and a big yard, and plenty of room for entertaining my friends.

When I close my eyes, it's the house that I have envisioned for years.

So, why is it that for the past two weeks I've been in a right tizzy over this whole topic? Is it normal to have nightmares of the movie "The Money Pit" and to have second, third and fourth thoughts?

I'm not a decider by any means. I hem and haw over the produce section in the grocery store. You should have seen me on the hunt for my perfect home. Thank Heaven I had a Realtor on my side who is used to holding her clients' hands. I'm sure I'm not her first client to cry when signing the contract's dotted line.

Of course, I also had a lot of advice from friends and co-workers in the whole process. Much like older and wiser women like to frighten young pregnant first-time mothers with horror stories of 24-hour labors almost everyone I talked to had a horror story of home buying gone terribly awry.

Thanks, but if you really want to support me, keep it to yourselves. I don't need to know about your co-worker's brother's nephew's baby-sitter who woke up one morning with half of her house gone in a freak termite infestation. Nor do I need to hear about your cousin's mother-in-law's veterinarian's lawyer who wound up buying a home with dry rot, toxic mold and Radon.

I have my own active imagination, thank you. Trust me, anything you can think up is no match for what's already in my warped little brain.

In my heart I do know that this is the right move for me. The house may need updating, sure. I'm going to have to put a lot of sweat equity into my investment, but then again I've never been afraid to work for what I want. Who hasn't moved into a home with wallpaper that was a tad on the dated side? It'll definitely be a change to be able to go to a home improvement store and let myself dream about flooring and paint chips for my own home and not a rental. Truthfully, I can't wait to swing a hammer and wield a paint roller. I'm practically giddy to learn the fine art of plumbing and electrical wiring.

Yes indeed, people buy houses every day. And for the first time, I'm one of those people.

Jennifer M. Latzke can be reached by phone at 620-227-1807, or by e-mail at jlatzke@hpj.com.

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4/2/07

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Date: 3/27/07

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