efinancedirectory.com — When you rent, most people mistakenly assume the decision is made out of necessity, not rationality. But there is a very good reason to rent in today's bubble-stricken market: median incomes do not support median home prices.
Sep 20, 2007 View in Crawl 4
4my4eyesSep 21, 2007
This is dumb. The data is normalized to 2007 values which gives the graph a very skewed look at the bumps in the housing market. If you look at the actual raw values, you'll see that the graph is much smoother and that they actually have a pretty strong relation to each other. Yes, there might be a correction, but not by 25%. That's just rediculous.
ohigginsSep 23, 2007
Nothing in what I just read made any sort of coherent thought.
samssfSep 25, 2007
Let's not forget that you also usually have to pay someone else to sell your home. So to get money from your "equity", you have to pay someone. Great.
samssfSep 25, 2007
Yup, it comes down to how long you wish to live there. I hate everyone who says it's always better to buy than to rent. Usually it takes AT LEAST 10 years for a home to pay off. Right, who the hell is going to live in the exact same home for 10 years? People used to do this, and if you're middle age and live in a small town, then possibly. If you're into tech, young, like traveling, etc... there's a good chance you'll want or need to move within 10 years.Renting > Buying folks.
luanca11Jun 28, 2008
You're so right. I sold my home 2 1/2 years ago, right before the bubble bursted. The mentality people have in this country over having to own a home is ridiculous. Most of my friends who purchase a home within the last 5 years can't even afford to get a cup of coffee without pulling out the credit card. Most of them are "house poor". They have no savings, retirement or any other assests other than their house, which by the way, they just dropped more than 20% within the last year. Most of them have children, which they probably will never be able to help to pay for their college education. I feel sorry for them, since one of the main reason why they purchased a home they can't afford was due to "keeping an image". I am more pleased by the security of having a large amount of cash on hand and being able to live in comfort in a beautiful rental that I have ever felt over owning any of my previous homes, especially under the current circumstances. Is good to know that by renting and saving I'll have the luxury to purchase if I choose to when things get settled.
punbiasedJan 24, 2010
And we all know, you can TOTALLY trust and count on the economists. Never wrong. Just look at how they foresaw the huge bubbles and recession that was coming and steered us all in the right direction.Your economics prof should try another field because he/she is wrong and my years of experience actually working in the market have proven that to me.
punbiasedJan 24, 2010
This is purely a financial question here so what you ask for is pointless to the GENERAL discussion. How someone FEELS about renting or buying based on whether they want to fix faucets or chop down trees is not even related to this debate.Geography doesn't count so much because if house prices are cheap in your area you are almost 100% guaranteed that rental prices will be low as well. Who can make money as a landlord charging more than people can buy for?Financial situation does not matter because we are talking about people who can afford to make the choice. The financial question is what is a better return.