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I bought a house in 2016, thinking there was a 50% chance I'd be under water in it.
I did something similar with my first home. Thinking the housing market was overheated and there was a decent chance I'd end up selling it at a loss in order to move for work.
I was of course incredibly wrong.
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LOL I bet we're close in age.
The 2008 crash left an indelible mark on me. Doubly so because I was in Florida, a major epicenter for the worst of it.
I viewed the increasing house prices post 2013 as a TRAP. But I was convinced to buy in 2019, and I am still fully mentally prepared for it to crash down to that level or below again.
I still do sincerely think that the stock market is overvalued (maybe specific companies are not). But if you aren't willing to put at least SOME of your long-term money at risk in it, you're objectively missing out. And the U.S. is the only country where the insane growth might be justifiable.
Ironically, owning the house makes me feel significantly more secure because even if I lost my job and my retirement accounts dropped by 50% tomorrow, I'm guaranteed to have a roof over my head for the next year (foreclosures take a LONNNNNNG time to process) which should give me time to figure something out.
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