Why Rent: Renting an Apartment vs. Buying a Condo
It's the classic question, "should I buy or rent?"
It always seems that the answer is buy! And fair enough, you know the reasons to buy, building equity through home or condo ownership vs. “throwing your money away” if you rent.
Well, the team at myhood.ca decided that it’s at least worth your time to understand the other side of the coin – why rent? And there are some compelling reasons:
Location: One of the key benefits of renting is location. Many rental units are available in prime areas of the city, right where the action is and would otherwise be really expensive to own a place. Also take into account the cost of commuting to work. Often rental properties are more central for jobs, amenities and transit than homes in suburban communities and thus would save you money and time.
Flexibility: There are times in your life (which may be all the time), where you aren’t ready to settle down or be locked down – especially with a costly mortgage that comes with home or condo ownership. When you rent, you can pack up and leave at the end of your lease, without having to find a buyer and wait for the sale to close.
The Social Factor: If you’ve recently moved into the area or are just looking to meet some new people, one great way is moving in with roommates. Plus, living with roommates is cheaper as you not only split the actual rent between the group, but also utilities and possibly groceries.
Savings: Renting leaves you more disposable income for things like travel, recreation or just saving for a down payment on a home. When renting you also don’t have the costs of home ownership including interest on your mortgage, taxes, insurance and maintenance. Interestingly, many people say paying rent is like throwing money away. However, if you plan to move in the next five years, you could say the same about a mortgage. In the first five years of ownership, most of your mortgage payments are applied to interest, with minimal paid to the principal. So you won’t get this money back when you sell, and you’ll have all the hassles and costs of putting your house on the market.
Simplicity: Compared to owning a home, rental living is easy:
There’s no right answer as to whether you should buy or rent. However, there is an easier answer – renting. The worse case scenario is that you rent an apartment for a year and when your lease comes due, you buy a place. As such, if you’re not at a point in your life where you’re ready to buy, then simply rent and you can re-evaluate the buy decision at a later date.
It always seems that the answer is buy! And fair enough, you know the reasons to buy, building equity through home or condo ownership vs. “throwing your money away” if you rent.
Well, the team at myhood.ca decided that it’s at least worth your time to understand the other side of the coin – why rent? And there are some compelling reasons:
Location: One of the key benefits of renting is location. Many rental units are available in prime areas of the city, right where the action is and would otherwise be really expensive to own a place. Also take into account the cost of commuting to work. Often rental properties are more central for jobs, amenities and transit than homes in suburban communities and thus would save you money and time.
Flexibility: There are times in your life (which may be all the time), where you aren’t ready to settle down or be locked down – especially with a costly mortgage that comes with home or condo ownership. When you rent, you can pack up and leave at the end of your lease, without having to find a buyer and wait for the sale to close.
The Social Factor: If you’ve recently moved into the area or are just looking to meet some new people, one great way is moving in with roommates. Plus, living with roommates is cheaper as you not only split the actual rent between the group, but also utilities and possibly groceries.
Savings: Renting leaves you more disposable income for things like travel, recreation or just saving for a down payment on a home. When renting you also don’t have the costs of home ownership including interest on your mortgage, taxes, insurance and maintenance. Interestingly, many people say paying rent is like throwing money away. However, if you plan to move in the next five years, you could say the same about a mortgage. In the first five years of ownership, most of your mortgage payments are applied to interest, with minimal paid to the principal. So you won’t get this money back when you sell, and you’ll have all the hassles and costs of putting your house on the market.
Simplicity: Compared to owning a home, rental living is easy:
- Property staff to call if anything goes wrong
- Full-time maintenance staff to handle maintenance and repairs
- No snow shoveling or lawn maintenance
- No worries when you go away on vacation
- A single monthly rent cheque pays for all of the above – compared to many separate bills with home ownership or a separate condo fee
There’s no right answer as to whether you should buy or rent. However, there is an easier answer – renting. The worse case scenario is that you rent an apartment for a year and when your lease comes due, you buy a place. As such, if you’re not at a point in your life where you’re ready to buy, then simply rent and you can re-evaluate the buy decision at a later date.