‘Tough, but worth it.’ 5 crucial lessons I learned from buying a home in 2021’s competitive real estate market

Source: Market Watch — 

For years, I lived in a “flex” one-bedroom apartment that I shared with a roommate on the Upper East Side of Manhattan. I paid $1,600 for my share of the rent — and throwing away that money every month was getting to me. I wanted to invest in a home of my own, especially since I knew that rates on 30-year fixed-rate mortgages were near historic lows. (Indeed, some 15-year rates are near 2% and some 30-year rates are below 3%.)