Should You Rent Or Buy A Home?






by Danielle Russell


Renters are often in a quandry as to whether it makes sense to continue renting or buy a home. Buying a home makes more sense, particularly when taking a long-term view. This, despite the real estate market currently heating up with no sign of abating.

Renting - Advantages

Depending on which part of the country you are from, renting has its share of advantages. The primary advantage is your monthly rent payment may be less than an equivalent mortgage. Because the landlord would be financially responsible for shouldering maintenance, repairs and home improvement, you can also save more money that way. Still, these advantages pale in comparison to the disadvantages of renting.

Renting - Disadvantages

There are many substantial drawbacks to renting. That is why it would definitely be a relief if you had the opportunity to buy a home or condominium at an affordable price.

The biggest and most obvious disadvantages of renting would be the property losing value. Assume you rent a residence for $1,000 a month and you live in the residence for two years. You will have paid a total of $24,000 in rent, a pure expenditure. You would have nothing to show to your name except $24,000 in cash spent on staying in a residence. Compare this to what your landlord has gained.

Remember that there is a similitude between your rent payments and your landlord's mortgage. Using the above example, lets assume your $1,000 rent exactly equals the mortgage payment. For two years, you have indirectly paid the landlord's mortgage, helping them build equity in the house by paying down the loan. With the appreciation of the property, that is all the more reason for your landlord to laugh his way to the bank, would you not agree?

Appreciation, in case you are not familiar with the term, means the increase in an item's value. If the rental appreciated $20,000 in two years, the landlord has received a windfall. They may have seen a gain of $24,000 in appreciation and payments lowering the mortgage. If only your landlord could give you a plaque of appreciation. Pleasure doing business with you, partner, now on to the next renter!

Okay, let us flip things around and assume you bought a home with the given information we mentioned. It would be YOU who would be laughing your way to the bank, so to say, with your home's value appreciating by $24,000. If you renting, these figures should make your teeth grind.

Perhaps it's time you realized that it's high time you woke up from this nightmare of renting and shopped for a house to buy. Why make your landlord richer when he won't give you even a single cent back for all your troubles?




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