10 Things We've Learned in 10 Years of Home Ownership

It's been 10 years since we closed on our house.  A whole decade!!  That means I've lived here about half as long as I lived at my parents' current house (including the 4 years I was mostly at college) which is crazy!  Childhood is, hopefully, a relatively small percentage of your years but somehow expands to take up so much more meaning and memories.

We closed on our house on a Thursday, 100 days before our wedding, at the beginning of my first tax season and Matt was on seconds.  We spent our first Friday night cleaning our house which I remember very specifically thinking as something I would never have done before on a Friday night.  

At the time we felt so old and mature, having a house, a mortgage, college degree, full-time jobs, and a wedding on the way.  Now I look back and just think of how young we were, how little we knew.  About being homeowners, about being married, about being "real" adults. 

I have a few more months to contemplate what we've learned in 10 years of marriage (because you know that post is coming too) but for now, 10 things we've learned as homeowners.  Blows my mind a little that that's us!

10 Things We've Learned in 10 Years of Being Homeowners

1) Big home projects will always take double the time and double the money.  No matter how you plan for it.

2) Your house will never be done.  Just done for now.

3) Never buy a house with wood siding unless you either 1) are willing to pay a lot to have it sided or 2) are willing to paint it every other year.

4) A single bathroom is much more doable than you think.  But still not ideal. 

5) No matter how you first organize the kitchen you will redo it.  And then again.  And again.  And again.  I have no idea how many times it took me to get it (mostly) figured out.

6) You need much less stuff than you think.  When in doubt, don't buy!  When in doubt, throw away (/recycle/donate)

7) A place for everything and everything in it's place.  ALWAYS.

8) Don't put off big projects forever.  You might not get to enjoy them before moving out!  We said the paneling in our stairs was going to be the first thing we did.  It took almost 5 years to get to.  The bathroom needed a remodel.  Took 8 years to get to.  That one especially we wish we had done years sooner!

9) Basically anything on HGTV or any home improvement shows are infinitely more exciting.  And will inspire you to add to that never completed project list.

10) If you don't know how to do something, youtube it.  That's how Matt learned to do most of the bathroom remodel. 
 

Setting up our tent the day after closing. Because, why not??  We didn't have much furniture at the time!