Are you okay with renting or do you get sad about it sometimes? (bankrupt, paying)
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Welp, since the last time I posted on this thread, we, ironically, found a house. It involves moving further out on the island (ie. hefty commuting costs) and will only cost us about $700 more per month than what what we pay in rent... but it’s a cute house and below our means. We’re in contract and expect to close in March, so in a few months I’ll report back on whether I miss being a tenant.
renting is usually going to be more over time . the big question though is if you rent what are you investing in to not only grow money but offset that rent difference ??
if the answer is nothing , then you will do poorly .
on the other hand if you have the resources to buy a house and instead buy a business or investments that grow a lot more than investing in the house then you are a head of the came . we don't regret selling our house and renting the last 18 years or so . that money made multiple 7 figures over time that was not sunk in to another house . .
So what about people who don't have money to invest or live in Manhattan which is your mindset. Do you invest and live on the street, or rent and not have money to invest or buy and let that be your rent and investment.
Welp, since the last time I posted on this thread, we, ironically, found a house. It involves moving further out on the island (ie. hefty commuting costs) and will only cost us about $700 more per month than what what we pay in rent... but it’s a cute house and below our means. We’re in contract and expect to close in March, so in a few months I’ll report back on whether I miss being a tenant.
Good for you and contrats
as a homeowner of almost three years now what I can say is I have no regrets buying and I do not miss renting, in fact I wish I had bought 20 years ago.
Then all they have to do if call it a pet move in fee.
In California all deposits are refundable (and that's all that can be charged other than rent).
So-called non-refundable deposits, move-in charges, and even those utility charges that aren't metered all sound like serious violations of landlord-tenant law. I hope the renters in this thread are fact-checking these scumbags.
Landlords can't simply rename something to justify it. Scofflaws always think they are smarter than the regulations but invariably authorities can see right through it. Strangely enough, such people aren't the brightest nor the most innovative. They think it's a smart idea to rename a non-refundable deposit into a "X type of surcharge" and the judge will laugh and respond, "so basically an illegal, non-refundable deposit?"
As for renting vs. owning, I've seen a couple examples used I feel need clarification from an owner's perspective. A cat "puking" on the carpet results in thousands of dollars of damage. It looks like a small spot on the floor, but I can't realistically come in and carve out a few square feet of carpeting and replace just that--the whole thing needs to come up. And that's just what is visible to the eye. If it's urine, and if it penetrates the pad, the entire sub-flooring will have to be replaced. I've seen structural damage from cat urine that took thousands of dollars to remediate. I've heard of acquaintances who have spent five figures remediating cat urine.
Comparing ownership utility costs to rental utility costs doesn't provide an accurate analysis. Aside from the very real possibility that those unmetered utility costs are way out of line, if not outright illegal in your state, comparing your $100 dollars per month to an owner's $100 dollars per month doesn't acknowledge the plumbing repairs, maintenance, and replacement (water heaters, fixtures, etc.) that vastly outstrip the "savings" argument of ownership.
Lastly, if we're going to talk averages then the average home owner stays put for 7 years. The conversation revolving around equity and staying put for decades to make the numbers pencil out is not in line with the average home-owner's experience. Recalculate with that timeframe in mind and see how the numbers fall out.
I'm a firm believer in home ownership. My grandfather, who is in his 90's, and worked his childhood in construction until he spent his career in the S&L industry before it imploded out of existence told me that he thinks renting is where it's at unless you have a special reason otherwise (my grandmother owned horses, for example, among other reasons). They actually did stay in each home for over 20 years at a time. Did pretty well for themselves each time they sold, too (moving and land-lording from Southern California to Northern to eventually Oregon from the 40's to current will do that for you...don't think the results can be replicated as well now), but I don't think it was about the money so much as the pain in the butt he said ownership was for him over his lifetime. My grandmother recently passed and my grandfather reverse mortgaged their only property left. As far as I can tell, he's done with property ownership. So there's two different perspectives, same family, different generations
But if someone can't afford to live where they're living, then they can't afford to live where they're living. That doesn't mean they should throw their hands up, give up, and just rent endlessly. It is still a choice. The government didn't assign them their job and housing, they make choices, and they make choices to stay.
Not much of a choice when your job is here, and you can't find anything comparable anywhere else! Even my job, which isn't tech-related, is much more lucrative and secure where I am now... I tried to find work elsewhere (and got an offer in Oregon), but what few openings I could find paid less than half of what I currently make. That just isn't worth giving up everything I have here, when I'd still end up in basically the same situation.
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You may stay because that's where you know people. But maybe someone could move 30 minutes away so they are still accessible, but not paying nearly as much in rent. Just because things aren't easy and can't be changed today, doesn't mean they shouldn't be changed.
Haha. No such thing (as the bolded) here in the Bay Area! One would have to go like TWO HOURS away to find anything "cheaper," and I'm not about to take on that kind of commute. I have a colleague who was so desperate to buy a house, he did just that - and spends up to four hours per day driving back & forth over the mountains. No thanks; I'd rather rent.
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I didn't suggest you are there because it's fun (although you just said that's where your friends are).
I'm in my 40's, so our idea of "fun" is getting a pizza and watching Netflix. Even that doesn't happen much these days, since most of my friends have little kids who go to bed at 8-9pm. In other words, we could have just as much fun if I didn't live here specifically.
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Some people like certain areas because they enjoy living there. Just because they enjoy the area doesn't mean they should rent where it is too much of their income.
No, people should live where they want to live. Their reasons are none of our business, and if they're okay with not being able to afford a house (to purchase), that is their decision. Not everyone cares about owning a home, as this thread seems to be proving.
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Don't bank on a pension. That isn't your money and if that company goes out of business, it's gone and you have nothing. And no, your company isn't the exception that will outlast all sorts of other companies that seemed just as unlikely to die, yet they did, and the people who banked on that pension are left with nothing.
I work for the county, so if my "company" goes out of business we're in BIG trouble! And our pensions are through CalPERS, which is as stable as it gets... so that's one thing I don't worry about too much. But since you asked, I'm not "banking" on it either. Between the pension, social security, and my trust/inheritance money, I should be just fine. There are many ways to prepare for retirement, and I'm likely in better shape than someone with a healthy 401K.
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Owning would help you actually have a nest egg to move anywhere you want and buy with when you retire.
I will already be able to do that, whether or not I buy a house around here. And since our median home prices are around a MILLION dollars, I probably won't buy in the Bay Area even if/when I can... maybe if I had a family to worry about I would, but as a single woman it doesn't seem as important. My money, my prerogative, and I'm not asking anyone else to support me in the meantime. So who cares?
I'm banking on mine not going out of business. It's called the State of Florida.
LOL... basically the same thing I replied above. I work for one of the most financially stable & wealthiest counties in the nation, so I'm pretty sure we'll be okay.
And since the pension is part of our CONTRACT, wouldn't they have to pay us (who are already vested) out if it did collapse? I don't think they can just go "sorry, our bad!"
So what about people who don't have money to invest or live in Manhattan which is your mindset. Do you invest and live on the street, or rent and not have money to invest or buy and let that be your rent and investment.
what about them ? not my job to figure out what these people should do . the gov't don't pay me enough
now you are making up stories .that is nonsense and I have never said it is better for everyone to rent ..
This conversation is over when you lie
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