06/12/2026
What if one decision you made in your early twenties ended up shaping your financial future in ways you never expected?
When I graduated from college and landed my first “real” job, I felt like I had everything going for me.
I was working in the field I had studied in college. I bought a cute little three bedroom house in Georgia. I even adopted the sweetest puppy.
At 24, I was pretty convinced I had life figured out.
I fully expected to stay in that house for years. Maybe even decades.
Then life laughed and said, “That’s cute.”
A couple of years later, I met the man who would become my husband. He had recently joined the military, and before long I found myself preparing to move across the country to Kansas.
If you had told me when I bought that little Georgia house that I would soon become a military spouse and be moving halfway across the country, I would have thought you were talking about someone else.
Naturally, I assumed I would just sell the house and move on.
There was only one problem.
I had purchased in 2008, right as the housing market crashed.
Home values across the country plummeted, and by the time I needed to move, I didn’t have enough equity to sell without bringing money to the closing table.
Selling would have meant writing a check at closing, so I had a decision to make.
So I became an accidental landlord.
Not because I had some brilliant investment strategy.
Not because I had always dreamed of owning rental properties.
I became a landlord because I was trying to solve a problem.
Instead of selling, I rented the home and held onto it while starting a completely different chapter of life.
Over the years, tenants helped pay down the mortgage while the housing market recovered. Eventually, we sold the property and walked away with a profit that helped us purchase another home.
At the time, I thought we had made a great decision.
And honestly, we did.
But looking back now?
I kind of wish we’d kept it. That little house has more than doubled in value since I bought it.
The irony is that what felt like the worst possible timing in 2008 ended up teaching me one of the most valuable lessons I’ve learned about real estate: markets go up, markets go down, but time has a way of rewarding patience.
Those lessons about patience, equity, and long-term wealth building still influence the real estate decisions my family makes today.
Real estate isn’t always about finding your forever home. Sometimes it’s about creating options when life doesn’t go according to plan.
Not every home becomes a great investment. Not everyone wants to be a landlord. Every situation is different.
But time can be one of the most powerful wealth-building tools in real estate.
Looking back, I see something else, too.
At the time, I viewed that house as a problem I needed to solve.
Today, I see it as the first investment property I ever owned.
Whether you’re buying your first home, navigating a military relocation, or trying to decide whether homeownership makes sense for your future, it’s worth understanding all of your options before making a move.
Sometimes the house you buy for one chapter of your life ends up helping write the next one. Have you ever made a real estate decision that turned out better than you expected?
And if you’re facing a PCS, considering your first home purchase, or trying to decide whether to sell or keep a property, I’d be happy to help you explore the possibilities.
Jennifer Anderson, San Antonio Realtor
Compass Military Division
210-728-6558
