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    Renting is ultimately better and cheaper than owning your own house.

    I understand the most popular argument against this is that… at the end of your mortgage, you have something to show for it right? BUT you still have to pay property taxes and pay for upkeep. My brother lives in a small house and after taxes and upkeep, he pays almost double what I pay in rent.

    Renting is the shit. Super low drama. Broken washer and dryer? Boom. Replaced in a week, on the house. Getting tired of the same scenery? Move quickly and easily. No yard maintenance either! wooo hooo. Oh, and it doesn't cost you to practically put up your first born child as collateral in order to first move in.

    I feel like buying a house is a lot like getting married. It's something that our culture beats into your brain as something that all adults should just participate in without question. Too many people don't stop and ask whether these things are actually right for them. I'm callin Scam.

    I will die on this hill.

    EDIT:UPDATE: ….yeah I was wrong 🤣. Thank you to the people who explained it without feeling the need to tear me down.

    Renting is ultimately better and cheaper than owning your own house.
    byu/NotEnoughRocks1977 inFrugal



    Posted by NotEnoughRocks1977

    42 Comments

    1. TeenYearsKillingMe on

      Your landlord is not taking a loss on taxes and insurance so that you can have cheaper rent. You are still paying those things, they’re just included in your rent. All of the money you save on maintenance, the landlord has calculated an estimate per year and tacked it onto your rent.

      You aren’t saving any money but it is nice to not have to be responsible for those things.

    2. MobileAd8857 on

      My spouse and I are both really handy people so it makes home maintenance so much cheaper. I love my house and would never want to go back to renting. 

    4. abcpdo on

      1. homes appreciate (depends on the era obviously)
      2. if renting was cheaper in the long run than owning for the same property, landlords wouldn’t exist. 

    5. Enano420 on

      Buy a house and rent that shit out, then you can go and rent wherever you want to but secure your place first.

    6. SlamBlammerton on

      I mean, it’s cheaper to rent an apartment than own the whole building, but with houses you are paying for the convenience and aren’t saving any money, youre paying more than you would just owning the house.

    7. CelerMortis on

      It really depends. Renting is usually cheaper because people rent smaller places than they buy. 

      But when you sell a house, you typically get a bunch of money. Not true for renting. 

      Plus with renting your landlord can just throw you out, you have less control. 

    8. Smithy2232 on

      We just got hit with a $28,000 special assessment on our condo. We are definitely thinking of renting.

    10. RaucousRat on

      Your view does have academic backing: https://youtu.be/aU7v87EhDBI

      That said, one isn’t better over the other really. The choice should come down to preference, while understanding that preferring to rent requires more discipline in saving.

    11. itsacalamity on

      Uh. I think you must have had very, very, very good rental experiences. Nothing’s getting replaced in a week in a LOT of places.

    12. something86 on

      You have yet to be a victim of private equity purchasing your home as a senior. Maybe outside USA, but I know too many that have lost their rental home. All properties pay taxes, the fact your landlord hasn’t raised your rent doesn’t mean they dont pay. So many seniors took that prospective when they were young and now can’t find housing when they go into a fixed income.

    13. MostAsk855 on

      The argument against you is that the money you are spending on rent is gone but the money you spend on mortgage and certain improvements are investments that will be returned to you or your estate upon sale or death.  

    14. 30thCenturyMan on

      My house has gained $400,000 in value over ten years. How much is your rental lease papers worth after ten years?

    16. AVLLaw on

      Housing is an unavoidable expense for most people. You have to spend the money, regardless. Renting returns nothing. Owning builds wealth. My mortgage is less than rent. I’ve owned three houses and my mortgage has always been less than comparable rent.

    17. MrMuf on

      Depends on your stage in life. Both are fine options. 

      Only issue I have with the home owner mindset is when they consider primary residence as an investment.

    19. amahamahamah on

      I hated the insecurity of the landlord being able to end the lease every year. Different strokes!

    20. otter_759 on

      For me, the happy middle ground was a condo (I live in a large city). I still enjoy the same amenities as I would with renting (window washing, snow shoveling, doorman to collect packages, maintenance team on site, etc.) but don’t have to worry about unpredictable rent increases every year or two.

    21. mvr363 on

      You will be down voted to hell, but I’m with you. Been a homeowner for 10 years and it’s one thing after another to fix and replace. I’m not a handy person in the slightest so everything has to be contracted out. And everything is a good damned fortune.

      After I get a divorce in the next couple years hopefully I can get myself a tiny one bedroom apartment somewhere and live in peace.

    22. Winter_Bid7630 on

      If renting is cheaper than owning, why do so many people own property that they rent to others?

      I’m know there are situations and locations where renting is the cheaper decision. Just like there are situations and locations where owning is the cheaper option.

      These sorts of generalizations are so rarely accurate.

    23. Hitem20 on

      Bought a house for $179k and it’s now worth $375k. Use equity to purchase another property and rent to others like your brother. He pays the mortgage, taxes and upkeep, owner gains equity, tax benefits of now running an LLC and soon there is enough equity built up to buy another small home. Do the same thing over and over and all of the sudden there are 10+ doors that are paying for themselves and providing a passive income that far exceeds a 40 hour a week paycheck.

      Learn the tax code and benefits of being an owner before you set your mind on renting.

    25. EndlessSummerburn on

      People get very defensive whenever this comes up but it’s true. In this version of America, where rates and home prices are so high, renting can be more profitable than owning. Easily. For most people, in fact.

      The indexes have outperformed real estate since forever and if you rent and invest, you’ll likely have more money in 20 years than the house poor guy next door.

      There are calculators online that do a great job comparing the two. It’s just math.

    26. Looneygalley on

      We overall like our property management company. We’ve been with them in different units for about 7 years.  But I am SO happy we just closed on a house. 

      We’re tired of quick fixes, long drawn out repairs (we had water coming through our living room ceiling for over 2 years on and off), cheap finishes, cheap appliances, sputum colored walls, and all the outdoor areas have land mines of dog poop. Rules like you can’t hang a towel to dry on your balcony railing  And like I said I would say our property is great overall. But those are things we have no control over and I’m done with it. 

      Maybe buying a house isn’t always the frugal choice, but renting is not some perfect solution and key to an easy life. 

      ETA: as someone who enjoys being outside and gardening the lack of lawn care has bummed us out. It’s one of the things we are most excited about and purposely bought with a small yard so we can enjoy it, not be beholden to it. 

    27. ajrpcv on

      1) our mortgage is about the same as rent (caveat we have excellent credit)
      2) you have to have a good landlord. If our dryer breaks yes it’s on us, but if you have a sh*tty landlord you may be months without a dryer

    28. Miss_Awesomeness on

      My father in law pays two thousand a month for his rent, that’s what my mother pays for her taxes. She can sell and put that money anywhere she wants. He can’t that money is just gone. He can’t even move without financial help because he doesn’t have first/last/ and security. His retirement fund has run out and he’s living on social security, he is going to be homeless next month.

      With all due respect, your rent will continue to increase and your brother’s bills will decrease. Four years ago the average rent was $1200 and that was high for the wages. Now it’s $3000.

    30. ewas86 on

      It depends on how long you plan to stay there. Long term buying is better. Short term renting is better.

    31. Extra-Blueberry-4320 on

      Yeah but if you get a shitty landlord, you could end up with sewage coming out of your shower drain because the pipes weren’t maintained and the plumbing was likely a DIY special. Renting is nice if you have a good landlord who takes care of things.

    32. Shifting_Baseline on

      If renting was cheaper people wouldn’t get rich being landlords, it’s as simple as that. It might feel cheaper, but rent includes the money needed for mortgage and maintenance, and then some level of profit on top. If it wasn’t profitable, people wouldn’t rent you the home. It’s simple math.

    33. slothsie on

      Until your landlord refuses to fix their furnace during winter in eastern Ontario. I wasn’t particularly interested in owning until then, but renting isn’t for me now. What an awful experience. And illegal. They tried to extort us for damages and I was like “we will see you in court over your illegal actions then” and they shut up.

    34. Csherman92 on

      Right now our mortgage payment is less than rent would be in the area.

      I love owning a house. Yes there’s maintenance required but it’s so much less stressful than having to deal with broken cheap items all the time and waiting for someone else to fix it.

      You also have the option to customize the home. Paint, add ceiling fans, remodel, renovate to your liking.

    36. mage_irl on

      It depends on what you are buying and renting and for what price of course, but the blanket statement that renting is just better is wrong. You can just take a calculator out and do some math when you are actually presented with both options and find out rather than disregarding one option from the start.

    37. Actual-Muffin-3585 on

      My house is worth more than double what I paid in 2017 and the interest is 3%. The payment is $900 (including taxes and insurance) and will be paid off in 5 years and then I don’t have any housing payment other than very low taxes. If I were renting, it would be $1500-$2000 per month until I die….

    38. DrenAss on

      Right now rent is often cheaper than mortgages where I live because your landlord might have a mortgage from 10 years ago, which is wildly different from 2020- current prices. But you also get a lot less space. 

      I totally agree that upkeep is a huge cost because when you buy your first house, every weekend is a trip to the hardware store to buy a tool, a lawnmower, etc. Jesus, we were broke for a year from all of the stuff needed to maintain the house, which a landlord already has. 

    39. kycolonel on

      You’re not taking into consideration that rent will continue to rise forever (in the US) and a mortgage is a hedge against that minus taxes and insurance.

    40. XandersCat on

      You are totally correct. If you crunch the numbers, it’s a myth that home ownership is this great investment. I’m not claiming it’s a worse investment vs renting, but at best it’s break-even or a slight edge over renting. In very expensive cities it is a loss vs renting.

      In less expensive cities you need to own a home for years before you start to come out “ahead”. Even then it’s unrealized gains because you won’t want to move to “get” the money you saved because then you start the cycle all over again of buying a new home in a different area etc.

    41. Live_Mastodon_5922 on

      Renting is cheaper and worth it if you are taking the money you are saving from not owning a home and investing that in areas that beat inflation – the stock market for example.

    42. General_Spring8635 on

      I have been able to invest in a lot of stock with my extra money I didn’t put in a down payment. My rent is predictable, and allows me the freedom I need in my life. My time is valuable to me.

      There is no right or wrong answer. It depends on the person and I wish people would be more respectful of different lifestyles. But this is reddit…

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