Comments on: Is Apartment Living Much Simpler Than Home Ownership?

By: Robert

Robert — Thu, 16 Jun 2011 20:59:59 +0000

Owning a paid for home is way better than renting either a home or an apartment. To get there sooner, rather than at the end of a 30 year mortgage you have to be willing to compromise on some things, like square footage and number of rooms. No matter how many baths you have, how many showers can be run at the same time? One, usually.

By paying attention to what you really need instead of “must haves” paying off a 15 yr mortgage in 7 to 8 years becomes feasible, while still saving for retirement, if you put a few extra dollars out of EACH paycheck on the principle. Two wage earners paid every two weeks means 80.00 extra each month on the principle, which is absolutely huge over the life of the mortgage.

Much of the financial debate about home ownership is predicated upon making a mortgage payment AND maintaining the home, plus needing to save for retirement. People have been conned into buying bigger and better beyond their means with the “biggest investment” of your life theory.

You have to live someplace, but buying a home should not be the cornerstone of one’s financial security. The peace of mind of not having a mortgage at all is better than renting or making payments

By: Beth

Beth — Sat, 21 May 2011 19:52:32 +0000

I think it all has to do with money and skill. If you have enough money to buy a house and can afford to hire people to make repairs, you might like owning. If you’re don’t have a lot of money but you’re “handy,” home-ownership might also be right for you. The loser situation is when you don’t have a lot of money to hire people and you have no desire or ability to make repairs yourself. Now we’re talking stress. Of course if you have friends or family members with mad skills, you might make out OK….

By: Brad

Brad — Sun, 10 Apr 2011 21:11:51 +0000

A couple afterthoughts: a pool and exercise facility on site. Who wants to actually buy a pool? It’s a headache. Granted you have to share them with other people, but big deal.

By: Brad

Brad — Sun, 10 Apr 2011 21:07:11 +0000

I agree, and I think the most important factor is definitely free time. How much is your time worth? If your hourly wage is any indicator, then it is probably at least $15 an hour. If you spend 10 hours a month on maintenance, that is $150 — unless it is something you really want to do anyway. And then add the actual maintenance costs on to that. Moreover, regular business schedules are getting so crazy that I see no reason to add any work for yourself that isn’t necessary.

People always point out the consequences of loud neighbors, but that is becoming a thing of the past if you move into a well-insulated, modern construction apartment. It is definitely much quieter than living with a family in my experience.

And another huge one: location. You can get an awesome apartment in a hip downtown area for like 1,000 a month. Getting a house downtown? Yeah right.

By: marci357

marci357 — Wed, 06 Apr 2011 17:37:27 +0000

Kathy – All your reasons tell me – owning a home is the best way still….

All the repairs and maintenance costs you mentioned pertain to renting a home also…I own two homes: the one I live in in the country and one I rent out in town: my renter takes care of their yard, the appliances and weed wacker are theirs, the A/c if they want one is theirs… I fixed the house up when I bought it so I would NOT have maintenance on it.

I have more time and space for my family in my own home – the grandkids can run and shout and I don’t have to worry about the neighbors, or where is everyone going to park. We can come and go as we please any time night or day without worrying about waking up any other renters.

If my energy level is going down in these later years, so is my patience — and living in my own house on my own property in the country sure as heck beats feeling claustrophobic in an apt. with lots of strangers living almost in my pocket. Can’t stand that!

I am living a more simple, stress free life, and it’s debt free also… I own my own paid for home No mess for the kids to clean up – they consider it a good investment of their inheiritence monies…. as my kids say, God is not making any more land, so property with land is a good investment
It’s small and cozy and easy care – and the views are gorgeous! On 2/3 acre, I have an 860 sq ft home, and a double garage, a huge garden area that the grandkids each have a plot in for their 4-H fair projects, and we are establishing a fruit orchard. At least we’ll eat well when the economy crashes…

Property taxes and insurance run $100/month – actually under $1200/year. Pretty darned cheap ‘rent”…

By: Kathy

Kathy — Wed, 06 Apr 2011 15:30:41 +0000

Most people who own a home never consider the cash they put out for all the maintenance that comes up. Have you ever listed on paper all the cash you spend in just one year for things like, gas & oil for the lawnmower, yard waste bags, hose washers.
New tools because the old ones broke. Furnace filters, furnace repairs, washer dryer and airconditioner repairs. Dry wall repair or maintenance. Paint, brushes etc.
(More than for an apartment, outdoor and indoor paints). Weed wacker refills. The list can go on and on.
Most people try desperately to pay off their mortgages only to have to renew it when a major repair comes up to be able to cover the costs, like replacing the roof or gutting a badly in need of repair bathroom. Then the process starts all over again to pay off the mortgage. Our econonomy is somewhat to blame but our perception of the perfect life style is also to blame. Simple living and having less seems to have gone away years ago and increased the stress and our debt loads. A house can be an albatross around our necks & makes it difficult to spend time with family and friends. We are a very busy society with working to make a living and working to keep our home and yard and appearances up we have little time for ourselves and others. Living in an apartment can afford us the time and money to enjoy each other and life a whole lot more; especially in retirement years when our energy levels are slowing down.
When we are young and full of pep a home and family seems like the thing to do. But when the family has grown up and left home don’t leave your mess for the children to clean up do yourself a favour and clean it up yourself and head in the direction of a more simple, stress free and debt free life.
Rent an apartment.

By: Elm45

Elm45 — Fri, 02 Jul 2010 20:01:24 +0000

Living in a pretty expensive area, I’ve never bought the idea that owning a home is better than renting. However, I’ve been a homeowner now for almost one year–bought a fixer upper that had already had alot done to it, but still, I’ll have put in about $20,000 in one year, and there’s still a way to go. I haven’t yet delivered my verdict on homeownership. It sure is nice having space and more privacy, but it is hella lot more expensive–not just the mortgage and the $20K improvements, but the utilities and upkeep, and taxes go up every year around here–just like a rent increase. Every time I walk into Home Depot, I drop another $100 on stuff that really doesn’t improve my quality of life, just my house! I’d have a lot more cash if I had kept renting, no doubt about it.

By: JFR

JFR — Sun, 02 May 2010 13:53:12 +0000

While it’s true that you don’t officially pay property tax when living in an appartment, it’s only a hidden fee in your monthly payment because the landlord have to charge more to you to obtain the same return on his investment.

By: Wellington Grey

Wellington Grey — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 21:16:17 +0000

This is the debate that my wife and I are having right now. The main advantage to owning a house is that you can really set it up exactly the way you want it.

While our previous landlord didn’t care about us making changes to our flat, we never did because of the impermanence. I think that renting is, over all, a much better deal if you’re not exacting about your living environment.

By: Nicki

Nicki — Mon, 01 Feb 2010 04:12:21 +0000

When mortgage payments are cheaper than rent, buying makes sense. I could rent the house I bought for five hundred dollars more a month than I am paying in mortgage payments. That’s $500/mo to save for those annoying expenses – if I wasn’t paying for daycare. !!!

But yes, renting is SIMPLER than home ownership for all the other reasons listed above.