Renting or Buying - Page 3

**exfarmer** · February 28th, 2016, 08:56 PM

We own two houses, a small one that is rented to tenants and a larger family house that we live in. The tenanted house gives us a small income and we're tempted to buy another, my only concern is that I'm not sure if we can do it without borrowing against the other two houses. I'm not doing anything to risk the roof over the kids heads.

kirkus · February 28th, 2016, 09:10 PM

I used to own a home with my then-fiance. When we split up I got screwed over hard. I been happy to rent ever since, I don't really miss the various demands of home ownership.

**tsunamiSD** · March 4th, 2016, 09:00 PM

I worked my way up the food chain, starting with a studio condo in North Clairemont, just east of highway 5 (and Pacific Beach). I now own a 2 story house - it was built in the early 50's but is in good condition, taking into account that I've sunk money into a number of improvements...

**hound dog** · March 5th, 2016, 05:27 PM

I've never been able to join the home owners club, and most likely never will.

When I was younger and the housing boom was taking of it was a dream that seemed always just out of reach. In hindsight, I think it worked out for the best in my situation.

My sister asked for and was given $50K by my parents, an advance on her part of any potential inheritance, for a down payment and bought a house in the Sacramento CA area for $300K at the height of the housing boom. In reality it wasn't worth much more than $200K. She and her then husband lost their collective shirts when the real estate crash hit, owing quite a bit more on their mortgage than the house was worth at the time. They ended up divorcing and both walked away from it.

While owning your own home is still appealing for many, if not most, there's also something to be said for the freedom to just pick up and go somewhere else when an opportunity may arise. Being childless and single, that freedom is an appealing trade off for the security home ownership provides, at least it seems so for me, having done it more than once.

**haroldeye** · March 6th, 2016, 02:51 PM

The property boom was fuelled by certain banks who had retailers as MD's rather than old style bankers, and encouraged by politicians who basked in the feel good factors that the populace had when they thought their houses were worth more.

My first house was bought on a 90% mortgage which was limited to twice my salary. Married couples could not use both their salaries in case the wife became pregnant. My local bank (the bank that led the charge of the bank brigade in the UK) were offering Non deposit 115% loans with no security. The MD had joined the bank from a major retailing firm and has since gone back to the Boards of a retailer and one of the UK's biggest owners of local newspapers (the one the left don't mention when talking about the right wing press). Madness, sheer bloody madness.

**SanteeFats** · March 6th, 2016, 05:22 PM

It pretty much depends on a few factors. A lot of people prefer to rent over owning because they do not want the hassle when something goes wrong.
Then there are the people like myself that would rather own than rent. Rent will always rise but unless you refinance, your monthly payment will stay the same unless insurance and/or property taxes increase. (They will).
I can do a lot of repairs or such myself but not every one can so I understand those who do not want to buy. Then there is the down payment in the US which currently is at 20% for the best loan deals.
I know several younger couples who just don't have the money or income to buy in the US. It is an unfortunate shame that so many must wait for their parents to pass to possibly get a house.

**trailmaster** · June 8th, 2016, 12:15 PM

I used to own a condo in the western county of DuPage Illinois about 20 miles west of Chicago. When the building was a rental it was really good, but when it became a condo just a few years later it started to go downhill. The condo board made up of a lot of stupid residents started to steal money from the monthly assessments, and when things started to go wrong with the building this board made a lot of stupid choices such as always picking the lowest bid when hiring outside contractors to do work on the building. I once heard one should never take the low or high bid. If you take the lowest bid you get incompetent workers. If you get the higher bid the workers might be skilled, but your paying for more than it's worth. One should always take the middle bid, then you get competent workers who know what they are doing at a fair price. When the roof of the building started to leak we got this roofing contractor who not only did not know what he and his team were doing, but they also used sub-standard materials. Because of this just three years later we had to get another contractor to do all the work fcked up by the previous guys. The building some years later needed to get all new rugs for the hallways. We were promised that not only were they stain resistant, bu they would last for 30 years. Big, big, big mistake. The carpeting not only stained easily, but after just a few years it started to fall apart. One of the most disturbing things about this carpeting was when one walked on it in the Wintertime and then grabbed a metal doorknob one would often get a nasty electrical shock. I originally was a resident of this building in 1978, but left after too many troubles in 1991. I sold my condo and made 5,000 dollars profit and moved back to Chicago to the Hyde Park neighborhood.

**Old Jud** · June 8th, 2016, 03:34 PM

I own my home, but I have rented in the past.

I'm not suggesting the part of Manchester I live in is rough, but half the population dream of owning their own homes, the other half dream of breaking in to them!

**snowy25** · June 8th, 2016, 04:52 PM

The funny thing is you often hear that renting is dead money and you see nothing for it in the end. However the same is true if you buy a house and have no one to leave it to. There are plenty of people with no children or any family at all who have bought a house instead of renting. To me in that situation paying a mortgage is no different to renting as in the end both buyers and renters see nothing for their money. Yes it may work out cheaper and you don't have to worry about evictions etc. However the cost of repairs etc are then yours which over time could in some places balance things out money wise.

I chose to buy my property when I was fortunate enough to come into a decent amount of cash. I also had a daughter that would benefit from my buying as it would be a base or an asset when I am gone. Had I not had a daughter though the chances are I would have rented because it makes no sense to me to buy if there is no one to leave it to.

**footstep** · June 8th, 2016, 06:00 PM

Different story for me.
Rent many years 3 different apartment and house, then bought a first house and finally a second bigger.
For sure no difference: owner is better.

In the end divorced in 2006 and lost all.

Re married now and in rent. Next step buy again in a few years. Life is an eternal cycle.

View Poll Results: Own or Not
King of your own castle	47	72.31%
Pay some landlord	16	24.62%
Still At Home with Ma and Pa	2	3.08%
Voters: 65. You may not vote on this poll

February 28th, 2016, 08:56 PM	#21
exfarmer avvie pic by Estreeter Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: Essex, England Posts: 13,737 Thanks: 109,422 Thanked 182,651 Times in 13,045 Posts	We own two houses, a small one that is rented to tenants and a larger family house that we live in. The tenanted house gives us a small income and we're tempted to buy another, my only concern is that I'm not sure if we can do it without borrowing against the other two houses. I'm not doing anything to risk the roof over the kids heads. __________________ I no longer have time to upload videos, sorry.

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February 28th, 2016, 09:10 PM	#22
kirkus Junior Member Join Date: Feb 2016 Posts: 9 Thanks: 48 Thanked 120 Times in 9 Posts	I used to own a home with my then-fiance. When we split up I got screwed over hard. I been happy to rent ever since, I don't really miss the various demands of home ownership.

March 4th, 2016, 09:00 PM	#23
tsunamiSD Veteran Member Join Date: Jan 2010 Posts: 53,015 Thanks: 633,094 Thanked 640,230 Times in 53,098 Posts	I worked my way up the food chain, starting with a studio condo in North Clairemont, just east of highway 5 (and Pacific Beach). I now own a 2 story house - it was built in the early 50's but is in good condition, taking into account that I've sunk money into a number of improvements...

March 5th, 2016, 05:27 PM	#24
hound dog Vintage Member Join Date: Mar 2010 Location: West Coast of North America Posts: 1,104 Thanks: 6,453 Thanked 18,732 Times in 1,087 Posts	I've never been able to join the home owners club, and most likely never will. When I was younger and the housing boom was taking of it was a dream that seemed always just out of reach. In hindsight, I think it worked out for the best in my situation. My sister asked for and was given $50K by my parents, an advance on her part of any potential inheritance, for a down payment and bought a house in the Sacramento CA area for $300K at the height of the housing boom. In reality it wasn't worth much more than $200K. She and her then husband lost their collective shirts when the real estate crash hit, owing quite a bit more on their mortgage than the house was worth at the time. They ended up divorcing and both walked away from it. While owning your own home is still appealing for many, if not most, there's also something to be said for the freedom to just pick up and go somewhere else when an opportunity may arise. Being childless and single, that freedom is an appealing trade off for the security home ownership provides, at least it seems so for me, having done it more than once.

March 6th, 2016, 02:51 PM	#25
haroldeye Moderator Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Halfwitistan Posts: 5,715 Thanks: 113,487 Thanked 59,962 Times in 5,707 Posts	The property boom was fuelled by certain banks who had retailers as MD's rather than old style bankers, and encouraged by politicians who basked in the feel good factors that the populace had when they thought their houses were worth more. My first house was bought on a 90% mortgage which was limited to twice my salary. Married couples could not use both their salaries in case the wife became pregnant. My local bank (the bank that led the charge of the bank brigade in the UK) were offering Non deposit 115% loans with no security. The MD had joined the bank from a major retailing firm and has since gone back to the Boards of a retailer and one of the UK's biggest owners of local newspapers (the one the left don't mention when talking about the right wing press). Madness, sheer bloody madness.

March 6th, 2016, 05:22 PM	#26
SanteeFats Super Moderator Join Date: Jul 2013 Location: Santee, Ca Posts: 60,813 Thanks: 281,805 Thanked 813,771 Times in 60,861 Posts	It pretty much depends on a few factors. A lot of people prefer to rent over owning because they do not want the hassle when something goes wrong. Then there are the people like myself that would rather own than rent. Rent will always rise but unless you refinance, your monthly payment will stay the same unless insurance and/or property taxes increase. (They will). I can do a lot of repairs or such myself but not every one can so I understand those who do not want to buy. Then there is the down payment in the US which currently is at 20% for the best loan deals. I know several younger couples who just don't have the money or income to buy in the US. It is an unfortunate shame that so many must wait for their parents to pass to possibly get a house.

June 8th, 2016, 12:15 PM	#27
trailmaster Veteran Member Join Date: Sep 2013 Location: Chicago, Illinois, USA Posts: 59,888 Thanks: 1,328,972 Thanked 707,168 Times in 60,062 Posts	I used to own a condo in the western county of DuPage Illinois about 20 miles west of Chicago. When the building was a rental it was really good, but when it became a condo just a few years later it started to go downhill. The condo board made up of a lot of stupid residents started to steal money from the monthly assessments, and when things started to go wrong with the building this board made a lot of stupid choices such as always picking the lowest bid when hiring outside contractors to do work on the building. I once heard one should never take the low or high bid. If you take the lowest bid you get incompetent workers. If you get the higher bid the workers might be skilled, but your paying for more than it's worth. One should always take the middle bid, then you get competent workers who know what they are doing at a fair price. When the roof of the building started to leak we got this roofing contractor who not only did not know what he and his team were doing, but they also used sub-standard materials. Because of this just three years later we had to get another contractor to do all the work fcked up by the previous guys. The building some years later needed to get all new rugs for the hallways. We were promised that not only were they stain resistant, bu they would last for 30 years. Big, big, big mistake. The carpeting not only stained easily, but after just a few years it started to fall apart. One of the most disturbing things about this carpeting was when one walked on it in the Wintertime and then grabbed a metal doorknob one would often get a nasty electrical shock. I originally was a resident of this building in 1978, but left after too many troubles in 1991. I sold my condo and made 5,000 dollars profit and moved back to Chicago to the Hyde Park neighborhood.

June 8th, 2016, 03:34 PM	#28
Old Jud Vintage Member Join Date: Jul 2012 Location: Manchester UK Posts: 840 Thanks: 7,251 Thanked 8,633 Times in 819 Posts	I own my home, but I have rented in the past. I'm not suggesting the part of Manchester I live in is rough, but half the population dream of owning their own homes, the other half dream of breaking in to them!

June 8th, 2016, 04:52 PM	#29
snowy25 Vintage Member Join Date: Oct 2008 Posts: 2,274 Thanks: 6,664 Thanked 23,142 Times in 2,260 Posts	The funny thing is you often hear that renting is dead money and you see nothing for it in the end. However the same is true if you buy a house and have no one to leave it to. There are plenty of people with no children or any family at all who have bought a house instead of renting. To me in that situation paying a mortgage is no different to renting as in the end both buyers and renters see nothing for their money. Yes it may work out cheaper and you don't have to worry about evictions etc. However the cost of repairs etc are then yours which over time could in some places balance things out money wise. I chose to buy my property when I was fortunate enough to come into a decent amount of cash. I also had a daughter that would benefit from my buying as it would be a base or an asset when I am gone. Had I not had a daughter though the chances are I would have rented because it makes no sense to me to buy if there is no one to leave it to.

June 8th, 2016, 06:00 PM	#30
footstep Lost luggages? Join Date: Sep 2010 Location: France Posts: 7,268 Thanks: 92,097 Thanked 86,760 Times in 7,170 Posts	Different story for me. Rent many years 3 different apartment and house, then bought a first house and finally a second bigger. For sure no difference: owner is better. In the end divorced in 2006 and lost all. Re married now and in rent. Next step buy again in a few years. Life is an eternal cycle.