However, with all the water cooler stories of getting rich from the real estate ‘gold rush',

a different thought process creep into our consciousness. The primary purpose of home buying became "Investment"; not primary traditional reasons of:

• Use - as a place to live
• tax break,
• inflationary hedge
• long-term savings
• longer-term capital appreciation

Do not think, foremost, as your home as an investment. History tells us that over the "long-term' , families do create a nest egg and acquire capital appreciation. However, The key phrase to remember being "long-term".

A house should be a place to live. A place to enjoy. A place to raise a family. A place to meet friends and neighbors. A place to develop roots and community bonds. A place to call home.