I am. Mid 30s and still renting. I haven't bought a house because:
1. They are expensive. I can save and invest more while renting.
2. The commitment scares me.
3. I don't want to spend my weekends mowing a lawn and fixing water heaters. I work hard at my job all week and want to do fun stuff on weekends, and I don't consider home maintenance fun.
Anyhow, I'm always getting a hard time about it, like I'm a big loser or something.
Anyone else in my shoes?
I'm not quite in my 30s (28) and make the decision to rent even though I could buy.
-Cap Rates where I live are absurdly low (3%-3.5%).
-Equity accumulation in a mortgage is mostly in the later years. I don't know if I'll be living here in 10-15 years and my housing needs will most likely change.
-If I have a leaky pipe, electrical issues, etc I don't have to pay for them.
-Property taxes and HOA fees would consume a large portion of my current rent payment. I realize I'm effectively paying them now, but that goes back to the cap rate.
I'm in my 60s. I still rent an apartment. There are three people in this building in their 70s renting apartments. Many of my friends and age peers rent apartments.
I grew up in family homes in the suburbs. I'm in Manhattan now. I have no desire to own a home
I am past 30 and rent. Why? Well there are lots of reasons that I will keep to myself, but I agree on the yard work issue.
One should buy a house when one needs the space and has the money. You can go townhouse route but you then have HOAs and re-sale on those in some areas can be trickier.
Also, you are in your mid30s, time to stop caring what other people think.
Dude simple stuff really.
Your currently monthly rent is building no equity for you. With a house you're building equity. Bad thing with a house is that you're locked into that area, even if you rent it out. Maintenance costs shouldn't be that expensive really either.
Really it comes down to how much you value flexibility. If you think you'll be in that area for at least 10 years, or if you have a large family or friend presence in the area, then it probably makes sense to buy something. If you won't want to get tied down there, then just rent. Pay someone to maintain your place. It'll still make more financial sense than renting.
Yeah, no big deal. Pros and cons both ways, renting vs. owning.
The real losers are the ones judging you because you want to enjoy your free time not maintaining a house. It's their way of trying to drag you into their misery of two mortgages with a fat wife, three screaming brats, two car payments, and like you said, weekends spent maintaining a house.
50 w/ a wife and child. Still rent. Could buy but waiting to do it in cash.
I'm almost 40 and still rent. I can't wait til my 40th birthday. Everyone will really lose their minds when I'm still renting then!
I'm with you on most of your reasons.
I don't want to be tied down. My employer could sell out to a competitor any day, and I might be out of a job. I want the flexibility to move if I want/need to.
I like keeping my living expenses low so I can invest more.
I don't want my free time eaten up with house and yard maintenance. Free time is such a scarce and limited commodity. I don't want to spend it doing housework.
Bro, we all are....
That is unless you live in the South.... but whoTF wants to live there?
By my mid 30's, I had already bought and sold 3 homes. I sold two of them because of I relocated for jobs and the 3rd because I wanted more square footage/land. I recently built a new home on 3 acres of land and love it. As far as maintenance, I haven't really ever experienced major repairs not covered by a warranty. I prefer to purchase new/or newer homes that are energy efficient and fairly low maintenance. I like owning my own home, like the mortgage/tax deduction, don't have to worry about increases in rent, noisy neighbors, etc.
However, it is your decision and you shouldn't worry about what others think.
your choice wrote:
By my mid 30's, I had already bought and sold 3 homes. I sold two of them because of I relocated for jobs and the 3rd because I wanted more square footage/land. I recently built a new home on 3 acres of land and love it. As far as maintenance, I haven't really ever experienced major repairs not covered by a warranty. I prefer to purchase new/or newer homes that are energy efficient and fairly low maintenance. I like owning my own home, like the mortgage/tax deduction, don't have to worry about increases in rent, noisy neighbors, etc.
However, it is your decision and you shouldn't worry about what others think.
Good points about owning. I've bought and sold two houses and had pretty much the same experience as you've noted.
But, not having noisy neighbors is no guarantee with a house. Plenty of home owners have extreme nuisances living next door.
Home ownership...one of the greatest scams invented.
Average home prices is what, $200k?
Assuming 20% down, 2% interest and 30 year loan...
Congrats on paying $318,000 for that property over the 30 year loan.
You go to sell it and you HOPE it's gone up in value (in today's real estate who the hell knows but after 30 years, I would hope it would go up at least $150,000).
Profit right now is $32,000.
Now, think about allllll the "extras" you are going to have replace or re-do in that 30 years. Windows, roof, AC Units, Hot water heater.
Don't forget about those sewage, water and HOA fees (if applicable).
Might as well rent.
Yeah, better to pay $1k per month for 30 years of rent, heck that's only $360k, much better than mowing a lawn once a week and fixing a leaky water heater every 9 years!
Thinker Idiot wrote:
Home ownership...one of the greatest scams invented.
Average home prices is what, $200k?
Assuming 20% down, 2% interest and 30 year loan...
Congrats on paying $318,000 for that property over the 30 year loan.
You go to sell it and you HOPE it's gone up in value (in today's real estate who the hell knows but after 30 years, I would hope it would go up at least $150,000).
Profit right now is $32,000.
Now, think about allllll the "extras" you are going to have replace or re-do in that 30 years. Windows, roof, AC Units, Hot water heater.
Don't forget about those sewage, water and HOA fees (if applicable).
Might as well rent.
Uhh, but over the 30 years, the inevitable inflation means your rent has increased.
Lets use your example. $200k home, 20% down - so borrowing $160k over 30y. Rates are about 3.5% now which means $718/month payment for 30 years. The total amount you pay over 30 years is $40k + $260k = $300k.
If you assume inflation of 2% and your rent will increase with inflation and your rent starts at $718 you end up paying $350k for 30 years.
Obviously with ownership, there's property tax. But there is some write-off associated with that. But, I still see which scenario I prefer.
Remember kids, a house is an inflation-linked asset. Which means it protects you against high inflation. And it is a leveraged purchase.
crete wrote:
Thinker Idiot wrote:Home ownership...one of the greatest scams invented.
Average home prices is what, $200k?
Assuming 20% down, 2% interest and 30 year loan...
Congrats on paying $318,000 for that property over the 30 year loan.
You go to sell it and you HOPE it's gone up in value (in today's real estate who the hell knows but after 30 years, I would hope it would go up at least $150,000).
Profit right now is $32,000.
Now, think about allllll the "extras" you are going to have replace or re-do in that 30 years. Windows, roof, AC Units, Hot water heater.
Don't forget about those sewage, water and HOA fees (if applicable).
Might as well rent.
Uhh, but over the 30 years, the inevitable inflation means your rent has increased.
Lets use your example. $200k home, 20% down - so borrowing $160k over 30y. Rates are about 3.5% now which means $718/month payment for 30 years. The total amount you pay over 30 years is $40k + $260k = $300k.
If you assume inflation of 2% and your rent will increase with inflation and your rent starts at $718 you end up paying $350k for 30 years.
Obviously with ownership, there's property tax. But there is some write-off associated with that. But, I still see which scenario I prefer.
Remember kids, a house is an inflation-linked asset. Which means it protects you against high inflation. And it is a leveraged purchase.
And after 30y, your house has $0 in payments but if you rent, you still pay. Most people in their 30s now expect to live beyond their 60s.
And after 30y, you own a house worth $360k (assuming 2% inflation again)
30 years old here and rent a super cheap apartment in the mountains. No desire whatsoever to own a home.
I love the freedom to seek out work in other cities when I feel like it's time for a change. And I especially love not being responsible for every little (and large) thing that will need maintenance regarding home ownership, taxes, HOA, insurance, etc.
I guess it's more about your lifestyle. I would imagine if I had a wife and kids it might be more prudent to invest in a long-term home or something, but I'm pretty psyched that I don't have to deal with that bulls*t either ;)
Peter Gibbons wrote:
Anyhow, I'm always getting a hard time about it, like I'm a big loser or something.
Anyone else in my shoes?
Yes. I'd say near every American is in your shoes, I'd say all but there must be an exception. Anyone with a mortgage does not own their house. It's debatable that anyone who has cleared the mortgage but still pays property taxes owns their house. And just wait until your house is in the path of a new highway.
Jerry Maguire wrote:
That is unless you live in the South.... but whoTF wants to live there?
Perhaps millions and millions of people that currently live there or that move there every year? Why are you under the impression that people don't want to live in the South? It has lots of good things just like any other place. Even better things in some categories.
Dude, I stopped renting an apartment at 25 when I saved up for my own apartment. I would be ashamed at 30 to still rent an apartment. I tried hard to earn money and was able to buy an apartment. The most fun was probably the move. At first, I tried to implement it myself, but then I realized that I needed the help of professionals. The guys from the moving company were happy to help me. They provided me with a full package of services, including all the necessary packaging materials and clean vans. I thought it would take a very long time, but they did it very quickly. Thanks to their flexible booking schedule, I was able to find the perfect day to move. I was very happy with their work
Peter Gibbons wrote:
I am. Mid 30s and still renting. I haven't bought a house because:
1. They are expensive. I can save and invest more while renting.
2. The commitment scares me.
3. I don't want to spend my weekends mowing a lawn and fixing water heaters. I work hard at my job all week and want to do fun stuff on weekends, and I don't consider home maintenance fun.
Anyhow, I'm always getting a hard time about it, like I'm a big loser or something.
Anyone else in my shoes?
I'm 32 and I rent a condo. But that's mostly because I live in a place where home prices have been falling for years. But yes, the convenience and freedom is a nice plus.
Instead I put all my hard earned in the cash in the stock market. Until a month ago, I felt like a genius...