"This is how I feel about home ownership," he contin-ued, after reflecting for a moment. "For most people, it's an excellent investment. Leveragibility, tax incentives, forced savings, pride in ownership, and reading the paper by the fireplace make it pretty tough to beat. My house is more than just a good investment. It's also my most prized possession. All I've been trying to do is to warn you that it's not always best for a person to own. But I should add, before James does, that even if you bought for the wrong reasons and at the wrong time, you would probably still fare pretty well over the years."
James Murray rose and applauded.
"Can you give me some tips on buying, Roy?" I moved on. "What should I look for?"
"When you go to buy a house, you should look at it from two angles—"
"Yeah. The front and the back," cracked Clyde.
"Good one, Clyde," was Roy's caustic rejoinder. "The house should fit your needs and wants, and it should also fill the requirements of a good investment. No one can tell you what suits your needs and wants except yourself—"
"And his wife," Clyde roared.
"And his wife," Roy agreed, "but I can give you some tips with regard to the investment side of things.
"The age-old adage about buying the worst house on a nice street and fixing it up still holds. Location remains the key to buying any real estate, including a home. Proximity to good schools, to public transportation, and to shopping is also important.
"You want to make sure that as other homes rise in value, yours rises proportionately, at the least. To do this, you must make sure that potential buyers will always find