Now Playing: "Waterloo" by ABBA
Tomorrow, I am supposed to close on my house. I am nervous. I have been nervous for weeks.
The only advice I can think of to give a prospective homebuyer right now is this: moneymen like to know that you are in debt. They like to see that you like them and their kind enough to have given yourself over in dozens of different ways to various credit card companies and department stores and gas stations. If you do not have this sort of record of indebtedness ---and, instead, prefer to live simply and within your means--- you will be considered by mortgagers and other moneymen to be a suspicious character.
Therefore, even though you may not like it, force yourself to go and get a credit card from one of the big oil companies. Get one from a major retailer. And, every now and then, use these cards. But be absolutely certain that you pay your monthly charges on time and in full. Don't let it overwhelm you, but do use them.
This will show those from whom you wish to buy a house that you are a fully functioning member of our consumer society. Don't worry about it, though: the privilege of home ownership in our culture is tremendous. It is a blessing that too many people in too many places will never know.
I am grateful to my benefactors and I am hopeful that tomorrow will be one of the most important days of my life. That isn't an understatement. That isn't an overstatement. That is the American Way.