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Old 04-17-2015, 07:10 PM
 
Location: moved
13,590 posts, read 9,627,176 times
Reputation: 23363

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Quote:
Originally Posted by ncole1 View Post
Why are you comparing a 1-bed apartment to a SFH, instead of to a 1-bed condo?
Personally I'm glad to finally see the comparison in this form. One does not normally rent a house, unless there's pressing need for space; and then it's natural to buy, except for temporary relocation, such as for military families. What's rented is an apartment... a small, compact domicile, nested amongst many such others, typically in town, close to work/shopping/etc. But such a place is rarely bought, except in hip/urban areas. But there a single-family detached house is likely either prohibitively expensive, or simply unavailable.

It seems to me that throughout the great majority of America, we have two options for residences: seemingly infinite expanses of single-family houses, with lawns and garages and so forth; or apartment-complex buildings. So the choice really is between renting a 600 square-foot apartment, with no garage, no yard, no privacy; or a sprawling and gargantuan structure, complete with the traditional trappings of ownership.

I went almost directly from renting in a university dormitory, to buying an outright country estate. I went from zero worries about maintenance or chores, to wondering how to plow a 400' driveway and how to mow acreage that dwarfs a suburban public park.

The short answer, in my view, is that renting an apartment has overwhelming appeal for a single-person without kids, while buying a house has similar overwhelming appeal to a family with children. But this is largely a lifestyle choice. What about strictly financial considerations? Well, I don't believe that it's possible to untangle the financial from non-financial. There's just too much intertwining and overlap.
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Old 04-17-2015, 07:28 PM
 
18,498 posts, read 15,487,453 times
Reputation: 16168
Quote:
Originally Posted by ohio_peasant View Post
Personally I'm glad to finally see the comparison in this form. One does not normally rent a house, unless there's pressing need for space; and then it's natural to buy, except for temporary relocation, such as for military families. What's rented is an apartment... a small, compact domicile, nested amongst many such others, typically in town, close to work/shopping/etc. But such a place is rarely bought, except in hip/urban areas. But there a single-family detached house is likely either prohibitively expensive, or simply unavailable.

It seems to me that throughout the great majority of America, we have two options for residences: seemingly infinite expanses of single-family houses, with lawns and garages and so forth; or apartment-complex buildings. So the choice really is between renting a 600 square-foot apartment, with no garage, no yard, no privacy; or a sprawling and gargantuan structure, complete with the traditional trappings of ownership.

I went almost directly from renting in a university dormitory, to buying an outright country estate. I went from zero worries about maintenance or chores, to wondering how to plow a 400' driveway and how to mow acreage that dwarfs a suburban public park.

The short answer, in my view, is that renting an apartment has overwhelming appeal for a single-person without kids, while buying a house has similar overwhelming appeal to a family with children. But this is largely a lifestyle choice. What about strictly financial considerations? Well, I don't believe that it's possible to untangle the financial from non-financial. There's just too much intertwining and overlap.
What, exactly, about buying an apartment or condo , or renting a house, makes it an option not worth considering?
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Old 04-17-2015, 07:44 PM
 
Location: I am right here.
4,977 posts, read 5,739,652 times
Reputation: 15841
I have rented an apartment when I was 20-something, and it was OK, but I was THRILLED to move into a house with an actual yard and flowers and trees and a garden and no shared walls!

My son (single) is looking to buy a house soon so he can have his own yard and a dog.
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Old 04-17-2015, 07:49 PM
 
Location: Texas
44,256 posts, read 64,181,606 times
Reputation: 73922
How many people do I know who bought a house while single and then used it as a rental property when they got married...?
About a trazzillion.
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Old 04-17-2015, 07:56 PM
 
9,694 posts, read 7,353,044 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by statisticsnerd View Post

Then there is the flexibility aspect of renting. For a single person, homeownership just isn't that great of a deal unless you really just want a house for emotional reasons rather than financial.
ahh grasshopper let look at one more issue,

you buy your house young, when you turn 55 its paid off, think of the extra income at retirement age.
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Old 04-17-2015, 08:16 PM
 
8,556 posts, read 12,322,519 times
Reputation: 16457
Quote:
A single person buying a home doesn't make financial sense
This thread could just as easily be titled: A single person renting a home doesn't make financial sense

Everyone's experiences and needs are different. However, if you understand that landlords need to cover all of their expenses through the rent they receive (unless they're destined to go out of business), then it's pretty obvious that renting a like property is going to cost more than owning it over the long haul (with few exceptions).

I saved a ton of money by owning and not renting. Renting would have been much more expensive. I was able to invest the money I saved into buying other real estate, as well as investing in stocks. That said, home ownership is still not for everyone.

Last edited by Marka; 04-18-2015 at 04:03 AM..
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Old 04-17-2015, 08:47 PM
 
1,035 posts, read 2,054,829 times
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Since the pros and cons of rent/own vary so much, I think of it in more general terms. Does it make sense for a single person to buy a home versus buying a home when you have more than one person to help pay for it (spouse, roommates, relatives, etc.) so that you're less likely to end up losing it if something happens to you?

If you're sitting on a pile of dough, why not? Investment isn't just about financial return. Property ownership is also an investment in the future regarding those who'll come after you, be it children or any other person/cause you'd care enough about to leave a home to, which has given so many people a leg up in life.

It can also be something you use to pursue interests/business you can't pursue in an apartment, like maybe you want to build furniture for a living and having a home allows you to have a big workspace for it without all the inhibiting rules you'd have to follow and limitations you might have if you were renting an apartment.

BUT

If you're living paycheck to paycheck and your job isn't anything close to being secure, it's probably not a good idea to buy a house. You may have rent that goes up and be living in a property that isn't building any kind of equity for you, but if you lose your job, you can be all whatever, my lease is up in a month or decide you want to leave without having to worry about selling a place or all the nasty little follow you around for years things that can happen if you don't pay your mortgage lol
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Old 04-17-2015, 09:42 PM
 
20 posts, read 19,338 times
Reputation: 38
Those "maintenance costs" can vary a lot.

Items like roof replacements, driveway repaving, kitchen & bath renovations, septic or sewer lines, etc can run in the tens of thousands. That'll throw off your monthly budget a bit.
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Old 04-17-2015, 09:48 PM
 
Location: moved
13,590 posts, read 9,627,176 times
Reputation: 23363
Quote:
Originally Posted by ncole1 View Post
What, exactly, about buying an apartment or condo , or renting a house, makes it an option not worth considering?
Availability, culture and peer-pressure.

In the cores of major cities, most residences are highrises or similar multi-family structures; think Singapore or Moscow. Buying a detached house is impractical for anyone, and thus the remaining choice is whether to rent or to buy an apartment. In fact the American term "condo" is unknown in such places. One simply either rents and apartment, or buys one. In either case it's an "apartment".

Outside of major cities, and nearly anywhere in America, there is a prevailing culture extolling the single-family house, the detached house. Land is available to support such housing, and the automobile connects residential and commercial districts. "Ownership" means in some sense a badge of maturity and arrival. To own anything less than a detached house on its own land, is a half-measure and an intermediate step. Culturally it is inferior.

Then there's the question of peer-pressure. In the typical American office-park - the workplace of upper-middle-class professionals - how many people don't own a detached house? And those who rent such a house would likely be regarded by their neighbors as being inferior, as an unwelcome interloper in an otherwise stable community of owners.
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Old 04-17-2015, 10:17 PM
 
Location: Prosper
6,255 posts, read 17,026,277 times
Reputation: 9501
Quote:
Originally Posted by jackmichigan View Post
This thread could just as easily be titled: A single person renting a home doesn't make financial sense

Everyone's experiences and needs are different. However, if you understand that landlords need to cover all of their expenses through the rent they receive (unless they're destined to go out of business), then it's pretty obvious that renting a like property is going to cost more than owning it over the long haul (with few exceptions).

I saved a ton of money by owning and not renting. Renting would have been much more expensive. I was able to invest the money I saved into buying other real estate, as well as investing in stocks. That said, home ownership is still not for everyone.
If you're going to quote me, don't completely make up what I've said. I didn't say that ANYWHERE in my post, and I'm not sure why you'd even quote me at all if you're going to say what you said.
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