1.26
R: 8
J: 1
R: 2
/ 46
= .24
It’s been a tumultuous few years!
I’d need eleven years of stability (or stasis, which I think is more accurate) to hit 1 (at age 53). The relationship, sure. I like my job, and I can see an outside chance of staying there for 11 years. But 11 years in one home? The last time I lived in the same place for 11 years was… never. I don’t see myself starting now.
If you don’t mind me asking, do you own or rent your home? I’ve never been in a position to buy a home, but at the same time I’ve never worked toward being in that position because I never wanted to own a home. Doing so seems to permanent to me and I’d like the opportunity to decide when I don’t want to stay in the same place without worrying about whether the market will allow me to move.
I saw it happen with my in-laws. They purchased a brand-new house in a brand new subdivision that was being built before the Bush recession. Many of the lots in the suburb were unsold when the real estate market bottomed out. They survived, but lost a lot of value on the house. A few years later when they decided to relocate to across the country their beautiful home sat empty on the market for well over a year and they did not recoup their investment. There were fewer buyers, lenders were reined in, and they were trying to sell a lived-in house in a partially built subdivision that was full of empty lots (including right next to theirs) for new construction and a more than a few foreclosures. Who wants to buy a used house in a new suburb unless you can get a really good deal from the bank?
They ended up moving anyway and spent a great deal of money and effort upkeeping the empty house and dealing with real estate agents while maintaining a second residence and business thousands of miles away. It was a huge hassle for them and I’m sure it aged them. If I’d ever had dreams of owning a home before that pretty much soured me on the whole idea.
Renting does make me less stable (or static) since I can be asked to leave if the property is sold, although I got lucky this year. Our new landlady asked us to stay and told us that our intention to stay was a condition of her putting in an offer when it went up on the market. It’s a blessing too because she’s actually fixing things that had been neglected by the property manager and previous owner. Our rent has gone up considerably since we moved in here though.
Relationship: 32
Job: 1
House: 18
Total: .96
Last year it would have been 1.24, but I’m not complaining, since I left my old job to pursue my dream.