Do you own or rent your home?

BoomChickaPop

Sat, Mar 17 2007, 9:57 pm

We don't own a house yet either. My husband was quite happy tonight that he did not have to shovel Very Happy

Sometimes it gets to me, but I look at all there is for me to be thankful for and I try and put it into perspective.

batya_d

Sat, Mar 17 2007, 10:06 pm

No. We might have considered borrowing money for a down payment on a small home, but we're not sure where DH will end up long term for his career, so it makes more sense to rent at this point.

However, as soon as we are stable in a community I think we'll do everything we can to find $ for a down payment on a home-- paying rent every month is like throwing it away when you could be paying off a mortgage.

Squash

Sat, Mar 17 2007, 10:08 pm

Some pple find it much easier to rent a home their entire lives rather than buy. Not only financially, but as one of the above posters said - they're not responsible for maintenance.

Dini

Sat, Mar 17 2007, 10:21 pm

and you do have to pay taxes and insurance every month which goes no where to pay off the mortgage and you also pay alot in interest. I wouldn't say your throwing out money everymonth by renting until you look into how much it costs to actually buy and keep up the house.

lotte

Sat, Mar 17 2007, 10:21 pm

Squash wrote:

Some pple find it much easier to rent a home their entire lives rather than buy. Not only financially, but as one of the above posters said - they're not responsible for maintenance.

I know someone who pays $4000 a month here in Bklyn-I know it sounds crazy-but she explained to me that her dh who is in real estate made a chesbon on a paper showing her that its cheaper to pay such high rent than paying mortgage+interest.I dunno myself if it makes sence or not

Squash

Sat, Mar 17 2007, 10:25 pm

teneleven wrote:

Squash wrote:

Some pple find it much easier to rent a home their entire lives rather than buy. Not only financially, but as one of the above posters said - they're not responsible for maintenance.

I do know that it does make sense. I have a friend who bought a glorified bungalow and is paying an arm, leg, and half a brain and spine each month. She could've rented something with more square footage for much less than that!

batya_d

Sat, Mar 17 2007, 10:31 pm

Dini wrote:

Dini these are all excellent points, which is why it makes sense for a couple to sit down with a financial planner before making such a big decision.

Marion

Sat, Mar 17 2007, 11:08 pm

Well, it's safe to say that we own just over 1/2 of it...the bank owns the other 1/2. We did the cheshbon, and we decided we needed a place with a little bit of green (OK, the backyard is currently mud, but it's there), a bit less concrete, and more bedrooms, in the long term. We are paying less in mortgage payments (including the interest and the mandatory insurances) now on a 4 bedroom duplex with a nice backyard and several parks and schools and shuls in walking distance, than we were paying for a 2 bedroom, 3rd floor walkup. It's farther for groceries (for now...they're building a mini-market next door though), but we think the quality of life will be better, and it fits our budget better. If we ever come into a chunk of money we will pay down the mortgage.

A lot depends on one's priorities though. I know people who would never do what we did, because it meant moving out of Jerusalem.

happyone

Sun, Mar 18 2007, 5:35 am

Anyone that have a mortgage ever figure out how much they're paying a year in mortgage interests??

I just looked at my end of year total on interest payment and was in shock! shock

So yes, we do own over half of our home - the bank owns the rest, and in addition to our monthly mortgage payments which are "going into my own house", I just realized how many thousands go down the tube in interest payments.
Basically a house is great only once your mortgage is paid up.
Big problem is, the real estate is at its peak at least in the tri state area. Houses in Boro Park are 700k and above for what squash calls glorified bungalows. Even if you have 200k as a down payment you're left with a 500,000 mtg. which is beyond insane. In that case, I would rather rent than pay a mortgage for the rest of my life.

shayna82

Sun, Mar 18 2007, 5:39 am

Dini wrote:

yes but its all on what its important to the couple - like:

1. own yard
2. own garage
3. kids have their own bedroom, and might have to share with a kid down the line.
4. own privacy that you just dont get when living in an apartment

no one said owning a house is easy, but if all the pros outdo the cons, it is worth it.

ssbarnes

Sun, Mar 18 2007, 5:53 am

When my husband transferred 2 years ago, we sat down with my father (a CPA) and did the math. It was financially better to buy than to rent. We had taken the $5K we had gotten in wedding gits and let it sit in the bank, so that along with our income tax refund covered our down payment and closing costs.

Yes, we are responsible for maintanence. Home Depot has taught me everything that DH can't fix himself.

If you are renting, you are paying the landlord's property taxes and mortgage insurance. It is a personaly choice whether or not you have renter's insurance.

We don't like in NYC, so our cost of living is less, but so is DH's paycheck. When we moved, we went from renting an 1800 square foot 4 bedroom home for $1800 a month to owning a 2500 square foot home for $1100 a month. When you look at the amount of interest we pay on our mortgage, you also have to take into consideration that we get that back as a tax deduction.

I am not saying that it is for everyone. It was the scariest thing I ever did, but I am glad we did it.

greenfire

Sun, Mar 18 2007, 5:53 am

there are definately + and -
and in the end you could sell it for a price that is usually more than what you paid which means you get a good chunk of money back also - especially if that mortgage/tax payment is less than a monthly rental payment ... here it doesn't pay not to own ...

withhumor

Sun, Mar 18 2007, 6:32 am

For starters, how about a post ‘are you managing to pay your rent…” at homes close to a million dollars here in Boro Park, it’s a very distant dream for use still. But like they say ‘you gotta have a dream, AND a dollar”!

shabbatiscoming

Sun, Mar 18 2007, 6:49 am

we very badly want to won our own home and we have to move soon out of our apartment so we are going to be looking into houses, not aparments as to us it make more sense to put money into something that we will not be "loosing" the moeny on rent.

we soooo want a yard with a dog:) with a nice house to go with it:)