RENT VS.BUY
At some point in your decision making process you have to consider whether or not advantages of buying a home outweighs the advantages of renting. Sure, some of the variables involved in the process can not be measured as easily. For example: most people like to “own” the place they live simply because it gives them a sense of “home”. They don’t feel like they are wasting their time and money when they are redecorating.
But if you are renting your place, the chances are any type of renovations will be undertaken by the landlord and not yourself. You may not have a lot of say in a situation like that.
Here is a list of pros and cons of buying and renting.
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Buying:
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Advantages:
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Disadvantages:
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You will own your place;which means you can re-decorate, build, do whatever you like to do with it.
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If you miss your mortgage payment, your credit rating will go down the drain.
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Some of your payment will go to your loan balance (after year 5 or so) and you will build equity.
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The remainder of your payment will go to interest. You will pay A LOT OF interest for your mortgage.
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The value may increase over time.
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The value could decrease over time.
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You can change the look and feel of your home to your liking.
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You have to pay for improvements, repairs and upgrades to the home.
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You will write-off mortgage interest and taxes.
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The down payment can be considerable.
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Renting:
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Advantages
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Disadvantages
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You don’t have to pay for repairs / upgrades.
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Rents may increase over time – though they have actually declined in
Massachusetts in the last decade.
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If you are not happy with the look of your place, you can move to a new location very easy.
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If property values increase, you won't benefit. Though you can invest your money some place else.
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