Homeowners Define Communities
What a summer it has been – especially the last month or so. An earthquake, unbearable heat, Hurricane Irene, squabbling in Washington, D.C., but now it’s time for my favorite season. Yup, for me fall begins tomorrow with the start of the college football season.
University of Illinois football game
What a summer it has been – especially the last month or so. An earthquake, unbearable heat, Hurricane Irene, squabbling in Washington, D.C., but now it’s time for my favorite season. Yup, for me fall begins tomorrow with the start of the college football season.
I can’t wait for my Illinois Fightin’ Illini to get things started on Saturday against Arkansas State. Urbana-Champaign will come alive and I’ll be there. Several years ago my wife and I bought a small condo in town so we could enjoy our trips “home.” The condo has become the central piece to our enjoyment with our friends and family joining us on football weekends. It’s a blast and honestly we’ve never had the same fun while staying in hotels.
As we walk around town, you can’t help but get into the Illini spirit. But it’s not just college football that does it. It might be our local high schools. Football, boys and girls soccer, the marching band. It can be any group of kids competing that brings us all together.
It’s that sense of community that bonds us. And after all, isn’t that what home ownership is all about? Homeowners define a community.
While there is nothing wrong with renting at times during your life, renters – by the very nature of six-month or year-long leases – are usually more transient and often times not as committed to the vibrancy and viability of the community.
So as we start to enjoy the fall and cheering on our teams, think about what it would be like doing so without the community spirit behind you.
Photo courtesy of Flickr user buba69
