Best Posts in Thread: "Renting Is Throwing Money Away" Is Completely False

Could say a lot here but will say that White Wealth completely eclipses Black and Latino Wealth, with a large factor due to people of color not having nearly enough land or real estate.

 

Both have benefits and different levels of responsibility but... These folks out here talmbout "I'm renting because I may leave [Insert City X here]." but have been living in [City X] for 6 years and haven't even looked at employment at another city or saved enough to move away from where they are.... You may as well buy. Even if it's a one bedroom condo.

Now if you just don't want to have the overhead of a mortgage, I totally understand. There's insurance, plumbing, appliances, yard work... That's all on you but you have a consistent payment and unless you have a money pit house/condo most people won't be replacing an hvac or stove every year. And you can always get used appliances on the low low.

Also markets vary so buying in Atlanta may not be ideal but renting in Jackson, MS may not be ideal. There's a lot of variables to consider.

 

http://lifehacker.com/renting-is-throwing-money-away-is-completely-false-1747050568

You might have heard the old adage “renting is throwing money away.” It seems like common sense. You don’t buy anything when you rent, but you keep to keep the house you buy. However, nothing could be further from the truth.

As personal finance blog Afford Anything breaks down in massive, incredible detail, buying a home is a lot more complicated than “Rent, except you get to keep it.” Not only are there major additional costs that you’ll be paying for the rest of your life (like repairs, renovations, and property tax), but for the first several years of your mortgage, you’re barely even gaining any equity!

Should you keep renting? Is renting better than buying? Or should you purchase a home? Is buying the better choice? Your answer is going to depend on a massive number of factors, including:

• The local price-to-rent ratio.
• How long you’ll live there.
• Your alternative investment options.
• Your assumptions about inflation and investment gains.
  
• Maintenance, repair, insurance, property tax and capital expense costs.
• The rate at which rents rise.
• Et cetera, etc., etc.

You get the picture. My goal is to impress upon you — once and for all — that this myth that “renting is throwing money away” is wrongheaded. In fact, it’s dangerous. It oversimplifies a life-changing, six-figure decision. It’s probably caused thousands (or millions) of people to buy houses they later regret.

The entire piece is long, but should be mandatory reading before making the decision to buy versus rent. While it’s true that you’re buying an asset when you purchase a house, it’s an asset that barely keeps pace with inflation, and you lose the opportunity to make other investments. Not to mention, renting is underrated. Even if you think you’ve considered this topic top to bottom before, you’ll likely find some information you hadn’t thought of before (like a detailed explainer on the price-to-rent ratio) that you hadn’t thought of before.

Renting is Throwing Money Away … Right? | Afford Anything via Rockstar Finance