To Own or Not to Own: Home Ownership by Al Duthie To own or not own a home is one of the biggest financial decisions a person will have to make. Like any major financial decision I personally think the best method to use is the pros and cons list. This list could better be named the benefits-advantages and headaches list. And until I wrote this article I had forgotten all the things (responsibili- ties) that come with home ownership. Owning a home provides comfort and joy. Owning a home provides a feeling of security and belonging to a community, which is very rewarding. Owning a home provides a sense of freedom and allows a much better opportunity to entertain family, friends, and guests. Some of the big things not to overlook with home ownership include the search process, the down payment, mortgage, property taxes, home insurance, lawn care and landscaping maintenance, snow to shovel or plow, general upkeep, including clogged plumbing, broken appliances, broken A/C unit, broken furnace, water damage due to leaks or water flooding, or possible bro- ken windows. Not owning a home should not always be considered a bad thing. Sometimes circumstances dictate, or point to- ward not doing so. Other living choices that might be more ideal include renting (leasing) a home, apartment, or condominium. Renting does certainly have its place, especially for younger people who want the flexibility to re- locate quickly due to job changes or career advancement. Also renting has its place in terms of desiring a city down- town location, or for downsizing purposes, or not having to deal with maintenance of a home that is owned. And renting does force less accumulation of personal possessions (often things really not needed) due to much less stor- age space. And renting a place does not lock a person(s) into such a financial obligation as owning. I truly believe that if more thought was given to the commitment of home ownership, including the size of the commitment, and future obligations, there would be fewer foreclosures, fewer moves, less overall debt issue, and greater overall peace and joy. I do realize that sometimes bad things just happen out of the control of people, and these things do cause financial hardship. But societal pressure, unfortunately, many times, makes the home owner- ship decision for people (singles and young couples). Also, owning a home is not a right, it is a blessed privilege! And in this great country a majority of us can experience this blessing! Listening to all this, Jim certainly does not seem to have the ‘tired’ in re-tired! His dedication to preserving our farm land and forests is comforting to hear, and very rewarding to Jim. We wish him well in his continued retirement! mature trees per acre. Some of the trees will die, and some will need to be removed as they mature.” Jim said that these trees are not being grown to sell to people to fill in their lawns; they are being planted to re-forest the land. With a chuckle Jim said “My hobby keeps me out of trouble; Out of the bars and off the streets!”
2018 Sales Meeting The Ingredient Division Sales group (plus a few from Tech Service) got together for their annual meeting in Greens- ville, South Carolina this August. While this group is usu- ally scattered across the country, it’s nice for them to get together on an annual basis. We hope to see some of these faces in Ashton soon!
October, November & December 2018 Crest Ink 19
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