Apartment stress

[Fit_mommy]

IMO it really depends on the person's financial situations as well as his/her wants/needs in a place to live. Lord knows it is hard to afford to buy a house these days...just coming up with a down payment can all but kill a person! DH and I want to move into a bigger house before I get pregnant again and we are worried even knowing we'll make a profit on the house we are in now!

We bought our first house right out of the gate. We simply did not want to rent if we didn't have to for the simple reason that when you leave an apartment you are out thousands and thousands of dollars paid in rent. You leave with nothing but your posessions. When you own, even if you buy AND sell at the wrong times and lose money on your house you are still walking away with SOMETHING! This is why we personally stayed away from renting but it doesn't mean that everyone will see it the way we did and do the same. If we couldn't find an affordable house, ofcourse we would have rented and I don't put anyone down who rents for whatever reason they do it!

There are sooo many reasons to do either! It's just not black and white and no one is right or wrong. There are those who simply PREFER to rent as well! I worked with a woman in her 50's who never owned a house/condo/townhome in her life and did not want to! She liked to rent! Whatver her reasons, that was fine because she was happy with her situation.

Just do what makes you happy and comfortable. There is no right or wrong here.

 

[40something]

Bunbun...I'm not a financial analyst but even the 'experts' can't always predict what the economy is going to do.

But factor's driving the housing market always come down to the basics...available jobs, input costs for new construction and the biggest factor...location-location-location.

Lakeside property is always more expensive no matter where it is. Land surrounding expanding cities is always more expensive. I don't need to tell you that...you live in a part of the country where lots are probably sold per square foot. So, when buying property you have to discern is it truly worth the asking price or will the bottom fall out if a local large employer decides to move their plant out of the country and hundreds of people will lose their jobs. That was the situation where we lived when we first were married. Two large manufacturer's shut down plants in the nearby town and people were forced to leave the area to find jobs in other states. That left a depressed housing market behind that lasted for many years beyond.

Whenever you consider buying a house, don't be afraid of it losing value if you buy smart. Every large city you visit has been experiencing a housing boom since the 80's. It seems like it will never end and you have to wonder where are all these people coming from who are buying/building all of these new homes?!! And the cost of building a home is just outrageous but like gas for your car...we will pay it because we have to have a place to live.