“I hurried to buy my house in 2020,” said Meg, an office manager in Maryland. “It’s cheaper to assume a mortgage than to continue paying my college daughter and me with increasing rent.”
Now, housing costs consume 50% of her income.
Although Meg said she was “happy to own our little house,” the purchase lost its luster. Her aging row of houses requires various repairs, and other costs associated with home ownership continue to increase.
“I had to take out an extra mortgage to replace the calorie and the AC system,” she said. “I’ve been increasing the deductibles on my home insurance in an attempt to lower the premium. They increase every year, and my income doesn’t.” I will not be able to do more repairs unless there is a significant change in our situation. Our necessities make up 75% of my income, with 50% of the housing costs.”
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Meg is one of many homeowners from across the United States, sharing with the Guardian how much they are struggling with the cost of rising ownership.
In many parts of the country, increased mortgage and loan interest rates, explosive home insurance premiums and rising property taxes, as well as higher energy and shocking cost of home maintenance, have turned their dreams into a nightmare Dreaming of many Americans.
Assuming that your property will become a valuable asset and provide security, describe their home as a “monetary pit” and a “financial burden” and say they feel trapped in the house and they are almost or no longer burdened. Insurance, taxes, utilities and maintenance are now often higher than people’s mortgages.
“I come to see home ownership and health care as a stable force that undermines my life,” said Bernie, a 45-year-old network engineer in Minneapolis, who said in order to own him and his wife,” said. The couple has given up medical and dental treatments and cut costs around the site, despite pre-tax household incomes of more than $250,000.
“For four years, we planned to sell our homes and get into the RV full-time,” Bernie said. “Our houses do not provide any security.”
The fees are overwhelming and if I could get rid of this house, I would definitely
Amy
Amie, 44, a self-employed writer in rural Maine, bought her $260,000 home in 2020 and received a 30-year fixed mortgage at an attractive 3.5% interest rate.
“While my mortgage is reasonable, the price of anything else has put a huge financial pressure on my partner and me,” she said.
“Home oil costs are astronomy. The cost of performing energy-efficient repairs, such as new windows, improved insulation or heat pump installations, is beyond our financial impact.
“Cite our roof range between $65,000 and $140,000, which is higher than my year-on-year offer. Home equity loan rates are now 11% here and I’m afraid of the promise that if I can’t pay the monthly fee, I might lose it if I can’t pay for it. The risk of the house.”
A property tax of about $4,000 per year is another concern. “They just rose again,” Amy said. “I had to make a payment plan for electricity bills lately. If we could build a small grip on this land and get rid of this house, I would definitely do it. It was totally overwhelming. I felt trapped.”
Many say they want to get rid of their homes that are too expensive, owned and maintained, but feel that most of them can’t do it: Sell and move to cheaper places, and all kinds of people say they will Force them to mortgage higher interest; others say they have considered re-rental, but concluded that this is not feasible as rents in many parts of the United States are increasing exponentially.
Stephanie, a 49-year-old psychotherapist who sold her Massachusetts to Colorado, bought a manufacturing home for $130,000.
“Given our student loans and temporary disability due to multiple surgeries in seven months, that’s all we can afford,” she said. “I think it’s not for me to have a non-manufacturing home again. OK. After selling the last home, after 17 years of huge spending on mortgage and maintenance, I left for only $200,000.”
While the resale value of a manufacturing home may be very low, Stephanie hopes that due to the simplicity of her new home and the risk of falling into mortgage debt during a sick time.
Various seniors have paid off their homes, or hope to get a mortgage soon, say they may have to sell and relocate to areas with lower taxes from homeowners, including Angela, 60, from Angela, 60 La southern Chicago suburbs.
“I bought the house for $220,000 19 years ago,” she said. “If I’m lucky, I can sell it for $300,000.” She said that the local homes are not very expensive. The rise is partly due to the high local property taxes.
I just didn’t expect my family insurance to go up like I did after retirement
simple
“We’re taking a huge tax burden here and it really got out of control. Last year, property tax increased by $3,100. Now, I pay $8,800 per year on a home, maybe only for $280,000. My location Better than most people, today’s salary is $170,000.
“But I’m thinking – how to afford these taxes when retirement? I’m cutting everything.”
Angela, worried that her property taxes have consumed her pensions, has been exploring rural areas with lower tax burdens.
“But those rural areas tend to be more conservative. This country is so divided, and I may be completely isolated in some of them,” she said.
Older homeowners say they wouldn’t expect they would have to reach such rapid home ownership costs when they planned to retire decades ago.
Jane, 69, a pensioner from rural California, said their homes have become unbearable, mainly because of surges in insurance rates in areas where their natural disasters are happening.
Her savings were consumed by fire insurance costs as the mortgage about $100,000 was still unpaid in the home in the high-risk shooting zone, and she took on more credit card debts.
“We bought the house in 2008 for $190,000,” Jane said. “The cost of fire insurance soared, and my rates jumped from $3,200 a year to $7,886 in October. Maybe I should be better off Plan, but when I bought the property, fire insurance wasn’t the same thing. I just didn’t expect the cost to rise when I was going to retire.”
Her fixed Social Security income of $2,000 is also hard to keep up with the more expensive propane and electricity. “I have savings, but I only have enough for another year, $10,000. I don’t know what to do. I’m scared.”
Jody, a mental health expert in Florida in her fifties, said she is one of many Americans who have given up insurance for her home because the rates are getting increasingly affordable and underwriting The range is too poor.
I don’t have many homeowner insurance, just like many neighbors
Jody
She said her mortgage-free home will cost $5,000, with an annual deduction of $8,000, with a maximum coverage of $60,000 – a much less cost to replace the home if it is destroyed.
“As a result, I don’t have homeowner insurance for many neighbors,” she said. “Even in double income there is no average person. [household]can afford the house here. I’m going to sell it back to Michigan. ”
Last year, a 63-year-old graphic artist from Wisconsin ripped apart last year, and her insurance company has refused to pay for most of the loss nearby loans for nearly 20 years. Roof and fence repairs.
“We will have to postpone retirement before we can pay,” Jones said. “Owning our home is too expensive and we are considering other options.
“We are debating whether to sell and move to more affordable areas or to keep our property in inheritance for our daughter. Property taxes are nearly $4,000 a year and are increasing. We really don’t know if it’s worth it and absolutely feel like we are There is no way to balance all the costs of owning a home. We have enough fairness [to buy again]However, we will tend to rent our homes more in the future. ”
As an elderly person, I had to come up with a mortgage to pay off nearly $100,000 in high interest credit card loan
Patricia
Patricia, a pensioner in her 70s in rural Massachusetts, is one of several people who say they are forced to take huge debts after their seniors to continue to be able to meet their home ownership costs. .
The property built her three-bedroom home in 1985 for about $250,000 and now it is worth between $450,000 and $525,000, Patricia said the appreciation has been continuously cancelled. cost.
“I had no mortgage from 1985 to 2025, but recently I had to take out my mortgage at 10% interest to pay off nearly $100,000 in high interest credit card loans that I had to pay for maintenance.
Patricia is now worried that she will not be able to shrink in the end because her home sales proceeds (excluding property loans) will be too small to buy again in a small town in the area.
I considered finding a senior roommate but was eventually forced to quit
Bill Howard
Bill Howard, 67, is one of various pensioners, said they have realized that it is no longer possible for them in the U.S. because there is no chance of their fixed retirement income. Keep up with the opportunity for rising housing costs.
He had tried to stick with his late mother’s home in Reno, Nevada, which is worth more and more.
“I’ve considered using services to find senior roommates, but Reno is in the wildfire area and my family insurance is on the rise. I know I’m not going to be able to maintain that,” Howard said. The day after the home was listed, he took out several credit cards to the greatest extent to prepare for the sale and moved to Medellin, Colombia.
“I brought two suitcases with me and started living on July 66, 2024,” he said. “It’s incredible pain to leave everything behind. There are many reasons why I want to stay. It feels like being forced out.”
Fortunately, Howard is now happy with the move and is about to buy an affordable apartment in Medellin. “You go from being afraid of death in America to thinking: ‘Well, things will work because living here is cheaper’ – a month instead of thousands.”
Morgan, deputy director of brand partnerships for a fashion company in Philadelphia, only recently entered the real estate ladder, but is now worried that his home purchase could become a permanent financial loss.
“My insurance has increased by $150 a month and my monthly home spending has increased by $300 to $400 as utilities have increased. I have exhausted some of my savings,” he said.
“I have to prioritize discretionary expenses and reduce the number of times I have seen a therapist every month. I have considered selling a home to cut costs, but I only bought it a year and a half ago and I would rather not sell it, so I wouldn’t be due to the closure Lose money by expenses.”
Political and economic uncertainty further increased Morgan’s attention.
“I’m worried that if there is an emergency or a financial crisis, owning a home will give me less flexibility,” he said.
