Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I understand timing is everything but people who rent will never be able to pull money out of their apartments when a serious emergency occurs such as job loss.
Hmm, so renters don't or can't have enough money to live off of for 1 year+ or have enough money for an emergency?
What an odd comment to make.
Can homeowners who lose their job really pull equity out of their home? If so, how do they pay the HELOC/HELOAN back if they are out of a job???
Why do people assume renting always means an apartment and/or no sense of community, stability, etc.?
At least in my area plenty of very nice houses in very upscale neighborhoods are available as rentals right now. I've looked at a bunch, and the numbers have worked out to be much, much less to rent than to own every time. A lot of homeowners who would probably rather sell, but who refuse to give their houses away, (translation: won't accept anything less than peak bubble price) have become landlords.
I certainly don't agree with the OP that anyone buying now must be dumb.
Generalize much?
To answer the first part of this post, it's assumed because renting is never long term, where a lease is often given for a year or so. So every year, you hope that you will be able to resign, as well as hope that your rent will not go up. And it does.
As to many upscale homes available for rent right now? That's the key word, right now. These are not long term and I can assure you, the desire to sell them will always be on the horizon. I don't see how it's stable to rent one of these (which are not cheap to rent, by the way), knowing you will not be in them for any long period of time. And the odds of finding a comparable home in the same community to rent are slim as this is a temporary condition of the market. No one is saying you can't rent a nice home, you can. But it is absolutely not a "stable" place to settle. That's where apt. complexes come in handy. They are there only as rentals, will always be, and at least you are guaranteed to stay in the same community that complex is in, as long as you keep renewing your lease.
Lastly, thanks for agreeing that the OP's comment/title was the only "dumb" thing in this thread. Generalize for sure.
For four years until earlier this year I rented a house. The basement flooded every time it rained and water came down inside the walls on the second floor on one side of the house. No, I didn't pay to fix it. Neither did the landlord. It just didn't get fixed.
Quote:
Originally Posted by fairmarketvalue
Thanks for disclosing this little "glitch" on the "renting is better" argument.
That's where apt. complexes come in handy. They are there only as rentals, will always be, and at least you are guaranteed to stay in the same community that complex is in, as long as you keep renewing your lease.
This is true--we are currently renting in a complex, which has been great. We specifically chose this complex because they offered a 12-month lease (breakable for less than 1 months' rent), which would then switch to month-to-month after one year. Perfect for a place to live while looking for a home to buy, I think. I don't know if they will raise the rent after 12 months, we'll see... but I assume with all the inventory coming on the market in the spring, we'll have easily found a home by May 2010.
looking for 90"s prices is so totally off . what else can you buy that has the price from 20 years ago?
people that expect that, are people who are expecting way more that what
their wallet actually can buy.
the mindset of byers have changed .
seems that we now are dealing with people that suddenly expect a million dollar
house for 200.000.
to caravan [ btw, above does not apply to you] ,
i would keep an eye on the house with the bad sewer, to see if it goes back
on the market for an adjusted price.
Absolutely untrue.
20 years ago, what did a mobile...I mean "cell phone" cost? And what kind of services came with that cell phone?
Or a television, or a computer.
Services are all more expensive, but many many goods are less expensive today than they were 20 years ago.
And to reiterate a point, real estate in Japan is less today than it was after their bubble burst in the early 90s. We are not Japan, but it shows anything can happen. There is no rule that says things must go up or must go down in price.
To answer the first part of this post, it's assumed because renting is never long term, where a lease is often given for a year or so. So every year, you hope that you will be able to resign, as well as hope that your rent will not go up. And it does.
As to many upscale homes available for rent right now? That's the key word, right now. These are not long term and I can assure you, the desire to sell them will always be on the horizon. I don't see how it's stable to rent one of these (which are not cheap to rent, by the way), knowing you will not be in them for any long period of time. And the odds of finding a comparable home in the same community to rent are slim as this is a temporary condition of the market. No one is saying you can't rent a nice home, you can. But it is absolutely not a "stable" place to settle. That's where apt. complexes come in handy. They are there only as rentals, will always be, and at least you are guaranteed to stay in the same community that complex is in, as long as you keep renewing your lease.
Lastly, thanks for agreeing that the OP's comment/title was the only "dumb" thing in this thread. Generalize for sure.
You are just wrong about this. At least back up your argument with more than anecdotes. And I never said buying is dumb. I said many people fail to account for all the risks when they make a rent/buy decision. And given the problems in the economy, why would anyone err on the more risky decision until there is solid evidence the economy and the housing market is recovering?
Anyway, Forbes flat out disagrees with your argument about renting:
Most landlords I know or hear about are not looking to make a profit from renters. There are as many or MORE who simply cannot afford to live in the home they purchased so they rent it out and pay the difference to the mortgage company in a hope to prevent foreclosure.
Any of those people would be THRILLED to sign a multi year lease as it would mean they have peace of mind they don't have to worry about the stress of finding a new renter & possibly paying a few months of mortgage between renters.
And to give another risky scenario all homeowners face...what happens when interest rates actually start going up? If jobs and wages haven't come back, home prices will not either.
And if home sales are slowing even though there's historically low interest rates and a federal incentive and low prices, what happens when you try to sell your home that sold for 500k in 2004 which you purchased for 300k in 2009 to a pool of buyers who can only afford 225k because interest rates are between 7-8%?
And I say this as a former homeowner who made a lot of money simply by luck. I luckily bought in 1999, and I luckily sold in 2006. With all of the uncertainty with today's market and econ, I just can't understand why anyone would buy now. In fact, I am starting to think that unless you are buying very very low, which is STILL impossible in many cities on the coasts (look at caravan paying 500k for a 1700 sq foot box in Seattle), you are, to quote many housing experts, "destroying wealth instead of building wealth."
I am renting because I can't imagine overpaying in the current econ and market. And I am finding that renting is a lot less expensive than owning. I forgot how wonderful it is not to have to pay property taxes, lawn maintenance, insane utility bills, insurance etc. The truth is MOST AMERICANS probably can't afford to own. The media says prices are low. The NAR says "it's the best time to buy." Realtors say "the bottom is here." Yeah sure. Maybe in rural parts.
Unless you are building wealth by buying (buying very very low), you should not be buying in this market. Period.
Should be buying Euros or Yuan, in 5 years you will be able to buy an american house for 10 cents on the dollar, tops.
looking for 90"s prices is so totally off . what else can you buy that has the price from 20 years ago?
people that expect that, are people who are expecting way more that what
their wallet actually can buy.
the mindset of byers have changed .
seems that we now are dealing with people that suddenly expect a million dollar
house for 200.000.
to caravan [ btw, above does not apply to you] ,
i would keep an eye on the house with the bad sewer, to see if it goes back
on the market for an adjusted price.
AGREED!!! Has been this way for over a year now. And since it didn't happen, the cheering gets louder and louder that it will.
Quote:
Originally Posted by trickymost
Absolutely untrue.
20 years ago, what did a mobile...I mean "cell phone" cost? And what kind of services came with that cell phone?
Or a television, or a computer.
Services are all more expensive, but many many goods are less expensive today than they were 20 years ago.
And to reiterate a point, real estate in Japan is less today than it was after their bubble burst in the early 90s. We are not Japan, but it shows anything can happen. There is no rule that says things must go up or must go down in price.
Please, moved to the coast was right on!!
Quote:
Originally Posted by rubber_factory
Maybe the mindset of sellers has changed?
Maybe we are really dealing with people that suddenly expect a $200,000 house to sell for $1million?
I hope you don't actually believe that? Even at peak, no one bought a 200k home for 1mil. That's the utmost delusion at its best. Like I said, for as much as some accuse sellers as "living in the past" by claiming they are trying to sell their homes at peak prices(which I dont think is the case, at all, anywhere in the US at this point), it seems to me it's the other way around. Peak was over 3+ years ago and since RE didn't go down as much as some would have hoped, at least in some areas, it's this delusional type of thought that looks downright silly.
You are just wrong about this. At least back up your argument with more than anecdotes. And I never said buying is dumb. I said many people fail to account for all the risks when they make a rent/buy decision. And given the problems in the economy, why would anyone err on the more risky decision until there is solid evidence the economy and the housing market is recovering?
Anyway, Forbes flat out disagrees with your argument about renting:
Most landlords I know or hear about are not looking to make a profit from renters. There are as many or MORE who simply cannot afford to live in the home they purchased so they rent it out and pay the difference to the mortgage company in a hope to prevent foreclosure.
Any of those people would be THRILLED to sign a multi year lease as it would mean they have peace of mind they don't have to worry about the stress of finding a new renter & possibly paying a few months of mortgage between renters.
And to give another risky scenario all homeowners face...what happens when interest rates actually start going up? If jobs and wages haven't come back, home prices will not either.
And if home sales are slowing even though there's historically low interest rates and a federal incentive and low prices, what happens when you try to sell your home that sold for 500k in 2004 which you purchased for 300k in 2009 to a pool of buyers who can only afford 225k because interest rates are between 7-8%?
OK, then I guess if you and forbs say so, it must be stone! I guess all those millions of those that own who are also rich, are just a meaningless number. And, just for the record, I thanked you for not agreeing that buying was dumb...Did you not read my reply correctly? I did make it a specific point at the end of my last post. As to my examples of renting one of those homes you speak of.....not in my area.......all want to sell, and will, often keeping it on the market while renting to tenants, in order to acheive that final goal----to sell!!
By the way, did you actually read the article you posted? It spell "short term" all over it. As I said, everyone knows these homes are available to rent like never before in RE history, but the article uses several key words like, "for now", "how long it will last" "for a while", and so on. So I don't think I am "just wrong about this"!
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
