I survived the move.
Being a homeowner is almost the same as renting. I still have chores, I still have to go grocery shopping, I still have to work out, and accomplish some kind of personal goal that makes me feel like a person and not a robot.
But there are differences and new challenges. I actually have to care about my neighbors. I have to care about having earthquake insurance. I have to care about my plumbing, my electrical, my roof, my backyard.
There is a never-ending slew of projects. Right now it's redoing the sewer lateral, and painting two rooms to prep for my next challenge of being a landlord. After that, it's make the backyard stop looking like an empty weed filled lot, make the in-law unit an actual living space, make the front yard look less like someone went to Mars and then just dumped the red rocks they stole all over it.
Those are just incoming/ongoing projects. That doesn't include figuring out new furniture arrangements, making sure the tree in front is trimmed, or learning to sleep with new sounds.
It hasn't been bad, though it hasn't all been good either. It's been mostly okay with special days of awful, like when we found out that the sewer lateral estimate that came in our disclosure packet was off by about $7k, or when we thought about redoing the electrical and that turned out to be $25k.
We also learned that we have to draw a line somewhere when renting out rooms to friends. They have to actually have a job that they don't intend to quit a day after signing the lease. They need to understand the legal ramifications of entering a lease. It's difficult. I suppose that's why you don't go into business with friends.
The added responsibilities of homeownership pile up quickly. There's all the maintenance, and the new loyalty to your neighborhood. You don't want to be the shit house on the street bringing down property values, your neighbors glaring at you as they scuttle about their carefully made front yards. You want the nearby elementary school to be good. You want the local businesses to thrive. You have to care about zoning and property taxes, sex offenders, and environmental regulations.
The important thing is to pick your battles like any good general. You choose what weekends are house work, and what weekends are for you, and you realize that it will be a long time, maybe even never, that the latter will greatly outnumber the former.
It's a challenge that isn't for the faint of heart, I think that people should talk to their doctors before they attempt to buy a house.
The real thing is what you decide to do once you get a clean bill of health.