I’ve always thought of rent as dead money as well. At least, that’s what my parents taught me. So I kinda grew up with the mindset that I had to buy my own place. Unfortunately, my city is terribly expensive. You can’t afford a place unless you’re willing to be burdened by a corporate job for the next 25 years or so.

Like you, I do enjoy routine as well. I like coming home, you know? So buying a place I believe would be good for me and my partner. Just that we need to figure out the financial aspects first. This is a really good insight. There’s a lot of debate about renting versus buying, and I think you made a really good point here! 🙂

I think it’s a good move to downsize as well. Less financial burden = more freedom. Way to go, taking advantage of geographical arbitrage (if this can be considered that)!

I totally feel you – I don’t quite like working either. I’m sorry to hear about your difficulty with finding different jobs. I guess sometimes the job market really isn’t on our side. Hopefully you’ll find a job soon that you like better! Or at least, save up enough to look forward to your sabbatical 2 years from now 🙂 It’s great that you’ve put your blinders on! I’m trying really hard to do that on my end too.

As for my dreams, one of them is to one day become an author. Another is to become a musician. Unfortunately, most of my dreams have very unstable income streams. Which is why I’m working hard to save up now, so my nest egg will tide me through these tougher times. What about your dreams? Perhaps think back to when you were younger, what were your dreams then? 🙂

I completely understand what you mean! I have similar visions to yours. It seems lovely, right? And I totally agree with you on this – “If I had unlimited resources and a clear life timeline… home ownership would be a bigger priority.” Unfortunately I don’t think my health is in the best shape either, and I can’t afford to keep working a corporate job just to service my mortgage.

Hmm, as for my money goals, my main priority is to be free of my corporate job. It’s not the worst job in the world, but I can feel myself getting more miserable as time passes. I want to fulfill my dreams, not sit at a desk all day. So I need to save up enough to quit my job and start pursuing my dreams. I’m aiming to keep saving as much as possible, and quit perhaps 2 years from now. After, if I can monetise my dreams, I would love to get a cosy, reasonably-priced apartment. 🙂 What about your money goals? I would love to hear about them!

RE: “No one has been happier – they’re usually more stressed out.” – Oh wow, that’s an incredible nugget of information. It kinda blows my mind. I guess I have been so hung up on having my own place for so long, that I’ve practically convinced myself that it would make me happier! I probably need to spend more time re-thinking my choices in life and also re-evaluating my finances every year or something! I would most certainly keep you posted should I buy an apartment 🙂 Although it won’t be any time soon, you probably have a 5-year wait, at the very least. :X

RE: “How do you know what would make you happy if you haven’t tried it” – You don’t 🙂 . Learning most of what makes me happy was through trial and error. The rest from thought experiments and seeing how other people feel while doing something, such as owning a home. From observation and questioning I’ve done no one has been happier – they’re usually more stressed out. I am looking at sample groups across the world from you though 😉 . It could very well make you happy – I have no idea! Keep us posted with what happens after you buy an apartment. I’m super curious.

Thank you for the insight, APL! It really gave me something to think about. I understand the concept behind hedonic adaptation, but I think the difficult thing for me to wrap my head around, is this – if I’ve never owned an apartment before, how do I know for sure that it won’t make me happier? Something I’m currently struggling with and I hope to come across some answers soon. Although I must say that I love the “chalet in the Swiss Alps and beach bungalow in Thailand” example. It really makes you see the merits in having a life of freedom, not tied down to any huge-ass mortgage. You get to see all parts of the world, maintaining your happiness because there’s always so much change happening. It’s awesome!

I’m 300% completely against committing all of my assets to one “investment” as well. While getting my own apartment in the future is still on the cards for me, I’ll make sure it’s affordable! This $800K apartment was just too insane. Thanks so much for all your insights and stories, it makes me happy to know that I dodged a huge-ass bullet. 🙂

Lol – you don’t sound like a lunatic. I think I get that feeling – I do watch HGTV! Architecture really is beautiful. And I can totally see how living in that kind of environment with your parents would make you want something that was yours, that they couldn’t throw you out of.

Haha – there’s my pessimism again! Always thinking about what could go wrong lol. I thought about it more and another reason I’m averse to buying a property myself is because of all I’ve read and experienced with hedonic adaptation. Even the most gorgeous places on the planet become normal for me (and according to psych studies most others). Change is the spice of my life so being able to rent/AirBnb/VRBO a chalet in the Swiss Alps and then a beach bungalow in Thailand is more likely to increase my happiness since just having one or the other would decrease in wonder quickly. Or maybe that’s just what I tell myself since I don’t like committing a majority of my assets to one item. Who knows! But for now I am loving the no-responsibilities lifestyle and I’m happy to hear you’re starting to see its merits. It does feel a lot like freedom for me.

Thank you APL! I can’t quite explain why I love apartments either, but let me try. Since I was young, I’ve always admired modern interior design. Something about it made my insides feel all warm and fuzzy. (I hope I don’t sound like a lunatic). I could spend hours and hours staring at the interior design and architecture of apartments. I guess when I got older, my love never died.

Another reason is because of the falling out I had with my parents. Whenever they were mad at me, they’d tell me to move out or leave their house. In a way, it felt like I was walking on eggshells. If I did something wrong, something against their wishes, I would get thrown out. So, I wanted a place of my own where nothing like this would happen. Where I would have the liberty to do whatever I want.

It’s good that you can foresee all the negative things that could happen! That way, you’d never wind up with an expensive ass mortgage that you have to spend the next 25 years servicing. I wish I could have seen things your way sooner, it would have saved me many months of stress and heartache! But hey, at least now I know. 🙂

By the way, I’m starting to see all the merits in your no-responsibilities-no-obligations mantra. It’s liberating.

Thank you, Joel! I love how you term this as “investments” in disguise. Very clever! Definitely something to mull over.

It’s awesome you two came to this revelation by yourselves and that you had the time to think. A lot of people that I know rushed into these purchases and find themselves in a less than ideal situation when the dust clears. Thank you for sharing!