Mr. S and I moved into our first home together a couple of years ago now... (it wasn't his first home but it was mine).
Our flat was built around 1902, and it's of very solid Victorian/Edwardian construction; proper bricks, proper walls etc.
The only problem that came up in the survey was a slight bit of damp; but that's almost expected in an older property in England. It's to do with the near constant drizzle we suffer... but anyway, we moved in after a slight argument with the vendor who stated that it wasn't damp at all (we weren't willing to lose the house over it). The house required serious cosmetic work but we knew that when we moved in. To be fair, what we didn't realise was that the primary colours covering the woodwork were 7 layers thick and it would take Rodger the dimwitted workman 5 weeks, not 1 like he said, to sort it out.
In the first week, the boiler broke and the TV aerial fell off the roof. That said, the pros far outweigh the cons - it's nice to have property which if it rises in value results in a lovely little profit. However, house prices are astronomical here (think £240k for what you Americans would consider an absolutely MINUTE technically-2-bed but more like 1 1/2 bed flat) so we're skeptical about it going up much more. It's also wonderful just to have somewhere thats
yours, and not some ditzy lowlife landlord who conspires to make your life hell at every turn (the time of a rat infestation and refusal to pay for someone to rid the property of them features in bright lights in my mind here). Yes, I'm still bitter about my days as a tenant.
So far we have done lots of cosmetic work, but that's actually relatively enjoyable. I like instant results like painting.... however, this week, I am mostly hating home ownership as the plumber who is installing our new bathroom has reached new bounds of never-before known moronic tendency. The catalogue of screw-ups is long and boring, but suffice to say that it's been going on 14 days now and I could have done a better job myself.
I'd say that almost without exception, everyone we know who owns their own home finds it more expensive that they thought it would be, because suddenly you're responsible for a whole heap of things that you forgot to factor in. Plus you're inclined to spend money on things to make them better. But also, without exception, everyone I know enjoys having their own place and the security and enjoyment it brings.
But don't even get me started on tradesmen!