Renting v. Buying

You've got to buy for the right price & the house HAS to be located in an area that'll appreciate over time. Often-you're better off paying a higher price for a home if you feel the house is in an area that'll hold it's value. Lower price is not always better if you won't be able to flip it later on.. The interest & property tax write offs are another incentive to own vs. rent.

Quote Originally Posted by mattbrot:




I have been saying this for years.  I think that owning is overrated from a financial perspective.

Not arguing, but what can you buy that makes financial sense (tangible, not stocks etc)?

Not quite, I'm actually in the process of doing this now, you must have 5% equity in the home.

Buying a single family home drives our economy but is the worst investment you can make for yourself. If you need to own something make sure it has at least 4+ units. That way you can live in it while everyone else pays the mortgage for you.

rent a small place and then put the savings into buying tax liens. You get 16% to as much as 50%(2nd year in texas) ROI on your $$$.

When you are good at it you will see your savings grow by an average of 15% every other month. Even if you are bad at it and buy swamp land of a vacant parking lot, you will still get at least 16% on your money. Better than any CD.

The only bad thing is that you can't touch the $$$ until someone pays off the lien. If you are buying the right liens then your $$$ is only tied up for a couple of months at most

I was a Realtor for 1.5 years after college...Buying a property is a pride thing, CAN be an investment.

The problem is this : when you buy a property in 1993 for $185k and it goes to about $550 in 2006 and you don't sell and now it's 'only' $425k (as was the case with my mom's friend ) then you feel like you've lost money.. when in fact, all that is lost is the TIME Value of Money and the Opportunity Cost in having the money tied up for a longer period of time.

I assure you, my late father, my mother and I have NEVER lost money buying/selling a property in the past 40 years. Have I 'lost' other opportunities.. Yes .. but not REAL Money..

True.  But some have made good money at it and you certainly can't beat the tax break.

But look at it.  If you have $200K invested smartly, that should double in 8 years.  How many people bought a house and had it double in value in 8 years.  Not many.  So investment-wise, it's not even close. 

I bought my first place for $81.5K...sold it after 6 years for $145K.  But I sold it at the absolute peak of the housing boom.

This means that a household that took out a $300,000 mortgage with a 5% interest rate to buy a home has only reduced its mortgage balance by $8,600 after two years despite spending nearly $39,000 in total over this period.

_________

True, but you get to deduct the interest as well as your property taxes.  Better than renting a similar costing place. 

don't do 30 yr notes, put down a substantial down payment, and buy a home...not a freekin castle.

The best thing about owning your own house is not having to pack up the freakin boxes and move them ever again!