‘This is where all my money goes': Woman's tears reveal ‘house poor' trend

News.com.au

11 hours ago

The term 'house poor' is going viral after a woman broke down sobbing over the financial burden of owning a home.
A clip of a young US woman sobbing and complaining that all her money goes towards her home and mortgage has amassed two million views and counting.
'This is where all my money goes. Every time a bill comes – I just hate owning a home,' she said as she cried.
'Who needs to pay $250 for electric?' She asked.
The upset content creator captioned the video, 'Buying a home 0/10 recommend', and it immediately turned into a debate over whether owning a home is even worth the feeling of constantly being poor.
The woman's video exposed a common issue people are facing now with someone claiming her financial stress is called being 'house poor' – a common phenomenon due to the housing crisis.
Financial comparison website Finder found that 34 per cent of Australians are currently feeling financially stressed.
Aussies, on average, have a home loan size of $659,000, paying $3,935 per month, while those with a $1 million mortgage spend $5,963 per month on repayments.
The comment section descended into an argument over whether owning a home is worth it anymore.
One person claimed young people have been 'lied' to and getting a mortgage is a trick that people shouldn't fall for.
Another shared that after seeing that video, they definitely didn't want to be 'house poor' and would avoid buying.
'Owning a home is overrated,' another claimed, but someone else said they'd rather be 'house poor than rent poor'.
Others pointed out that she might be feeling poor now, but ultimately, the home value would increase, and therefore it was worth it in the long term.
Someone else argued that 'complaining' about owning a home wasn't right, and one shared that they 'loved being a homeowner' and saw it as a great investment.
Craig McDonald, director of CBM Mortgages, told news.com.au that preventing people from feeling poor after buying is about accurately preparing them for the financial implications.
'There is a jump from renting to purchasing your property,' he said.
'It depends on lifestyle and the kind of property someone wants. Mortgages are more expensive than rent in most places.'
Mr McDonald said that when it comes to how much debt people want to incur, it tends to depend on the type of client he is dealing with.
'It depends on their risk appetite. Some people want to know how much they can borrow and other times you get clients that appreciate their current lifestyle,' he said.
Mr McDonald explained that ultimately, what he tries to do is ensure that the right person is getting the right loan.
Some people are keen to sacrifice more in the short term with plans of a long-term gain, while others want whatever their version of living an avocado-on-toast lifestyle is.
The mortgage expert said that one thing Aussies need to be aware of is that when buying an apartment, strata fees need to be factored in to avoid feeling blindsided by costs.
'It is probably more prevalent with people that are purchasing units, and the reason being strata costs, and they can vary,' he said.
'You're probably not going to get a quarterly strata bill that is less than $600 and some of them go up to $3000 a quarter,' he added.
Mr McDonald said he has had clients where it has become 'really tight' because they've been pre-approved for a certain amount and then gone and bought a place with higher strata costs.
Financial expert Julian Finch from Finch Financia l said homeowners are always at risk of unexpected costs and should prepare accordingly.
'We always recommend people have a buffer in their budget and savings. Sometimes this means borrowing more at the right time to set cash aside in case of emergency,' he said.
Mr Finch said it can be easy for homeowners to get stuck in cycles where they're constantly financially behind if they're not prepared for something to go wrong.
'If you throw all your cash at something and there is no safety net – a flat tire, a broken pipe or hot water system, a small electrical problem – the slightest of things can set you back,' he said.
'You have to find the cash from your next pay cycle and all of a sudden you are chasing your tail for weeks/months even years.'
Mr Finch said that you need an emergency buffer of at least three months worth of loan repayments as a starting point.
'This allows the critical emergencies to be dealt with, while allowing you to shuffle things around while you recover without the stress,' he said.