deci$ion$, deci$ion$

Utilities	Current Cost in Apartment	Estimated Cost in House
Rent	$649.00	$925.00
Water/Sewer/Garbage	$34.00	~$60.00
Power	$100.00	~$60.00
Heating	-	~70.00
Cable/Internet	$93.00	$93.00
Cell Phone (Kevin’s)	$60.00	$60.00
Car Insurance	$78.00	$78.00
Netflix	$10.00	$10.00
TOTALS:	$1024.00	$1356.00

After looking through the house and punching the numbers, Kevin and I are still on the fence. In the grand scheme of things, we weighing the pro’s and con’s of staying in our current apartment versus moving into a house. The biggest con is the extra $332.00 it will cost each month to live in the house. The biggest pro is that it’s a house, not an apartment. Because I’m a lister (one who makes many lists to prioritize), here’s another:

Moving into the house PROS	Moving into the house CONS
1.  It’s a house (our own space)	1. It’s more expensive
2. It has a fenced backyard	2. You have to mow the yard
3. It has a wood fireplace	3. No washer/dryer
4. It has a quaint, cute kitchen	4. No dishwasher/disposal
5. Nice neighborhood	5. It’s in Gladstone
6. You can paint the walls	6. Odd layout in family room
7. Living area is nicer	7. Smaller rooms/bathroom
8. It has a garage for storage	8. Really small closets
9. Covered patio in backyard	9. Some furniture won’t fit
10. Change of scenery	10. Have to move
11. No lease – Month-to-month	11. It’s more expensive

So…after all that, how can we ever decide? I know I mentioned twice in my list that it’s more expensive, but since Kevin doesn’t have a job right now, money is a big factor. However, we are thinking in terms of flexibility. If we want the option of month-to-month, our rent in our apartment would be raised $200.00 per month! Month-to-month is very appealing to us, as we are not sure if Kevin will be offered a job in town or if we’ll be forced to relocate. If so, we really want to avoid paying any penalties for having to break an existing lease. It’s just so hard to decide and really know what’s best. How do you separate what you really want vs. what’s “best” for you? How can we make this educated decision? Anybody have any suggestions?