Home owning vs Renting

I was cutting grass today when I thought of my next blog entry. I have been a homeowner for almost two years now and I have discovered various pros and cons. My wife and I shared our first dwelling together in an apartment building in Portsmouth, VA called the Heights of Old Town. We started out on the third floor then moved to the seventh. As far as apartment living, the pros are few. To begin with, this complex included all utilities in the total cost of rent per month. This was convenient. Cable, Internet, gas, water, and electricity was all included. This made budgeting easier. We did not have to monitor how muck water, gas or electricity we used. We were not wasteful, but it was easier not having to worry with fluctuating bills. Also with apartment living, when something needed repair, one phone, two, or three phone calls were made to maintenance and it was fixed. It was their problem. We did not have extra expenses such as property taxes, sewage, refuse disposal, and emergency repair expenses.

Apartment living does have its cons. As mentioned above, we lived on the seventh floor. This means that if you need to make a trip to the car, you have to take a trip seven flights down and please let the elevator be on its way up. Laundry is done either off site or in the laundry rooms on the first floor. you live within inches of your neighbors above and below, and on both sides. This means you can hear when they come and go. Your privacy is somewhat limited because you live so close to people.

Owning a home is quite different. It is a different animal entirely. Each utility service is separated and fluctuates by season. General up keeping is time consuming. Whensomething is in need of repair, it is your problem, unless you have it covered under a home warranty. Our first summer we had to spend $900.00 for a termite problem. You have to your own yard work for pay for lawn care. You have sales people at your door every evening selling everything from windows to grass seeds. There is no end of the lease and your free to move.

Owning a home has its benefits also. We have enjoyed having our own space. Remodeling and making structure changes are done at my disposal.There are allot of economic advantages. Equity is earned within the investment. You get a substantial tax break for owning your home. Home ownership provides a positive influence on your credit scores.

If I had to choose one or the other, it depends on my situation. If I do not plan on settling down any time soon, I may choose to rent. If I am settled and plan on having a career, family and planting my roots, buying is the way for me.

Going back to School in my 30's.

Going to back to school for me is very exciting, but at the same time I am nervous. The anxiety of learning and keeping up with multiple subjects, taking quizzes, test, class assignments projects and so forth has me a little tense. I do see that as opposed to being in my teens and early twenties, I am more focused and dedicated. I was over confident in that I had all the time in the world to decide what I wanted to do with myself. I took school more in stride and I was not first in priority.

As a young adult, I kind of let the chips fall where the may. I did not structure and schedule my activities. I was over excited about being in college and living on my own. I did not take education as seriously as I should. I wanted to meet as many new people as I could and go to as may parties that I heard about. The education will come. I got my work done mostly at the last minute when I was tired. This led to me burning out after only a few semesters.

Now that I am in my 30's I feel more pressure to achieve academically. I am actually pressuring myself to be flawless in my studies. I realize that time is not necessarily on my side. I have home responsibilities, work and now school. I have a mind set now where I am focused, serious with no foolishness, playtime may come at retirement! I have made a resolve, however, not to burn out in pressure and stress. I will strive to stay balanced and also have fun learning new things and developing skills in my chosen new career path.

My First Online Class

My First Online Class

I enrolled in TCC for the spring 2009 semester. It was spring 1998 since the last time I enrolled in a college course. I decided to go back to college in order to change my career path. My original plan for college after high school was to pursue a degree in Graphic Design/Fine Arts. This plan changed to a career in the Insurance industry. I now am embracing a career path in the medical field. This entry outlines from then until now.

During my senior year of high school at Deep Creek High, Chesapeake, I accumulated advanced credits for the fine arts program. I graduated in June 1993. I waited until spring 1995 to enroll. I chose Norfolk State University because it was close and I could work and go to school. After two semesters I stopped. I decided to work full time and return to school later. I returned during the spring 1998 semester only to take one class which was a class that I decided to retake because of the prior grade. After that semester I did not return. I pursued a career in sales which led to the Insurance field. I obtained my life and health Insurance license in 2003 and have been in this business since.

In 2005 I met my wife and married her in 2006. The Insurance industry was paying but not well enough for me to feel comfortable taking care of my wife. My wife Michelle is in the medical field by way of CHKD. It was after discussing things with her that I decided to transition into the medical field, I am now interested in a degree in Health Information Technology. I aim with this degree I can work as a Medical coder or an administrator of a medical facility. This class is required in order to enter into this program. This is where I stand. My passion is to give my wife the option of working and to help people everyday. This brings me to my first online class. I am looking forward to learning better writing skills to put into practical use. I feel confident that this course will improve my written communication skills on a personal and professional level.