Owning a home is expensive. Constant maintenance. Replacing appliances, roof, HVAC, and loads of other expenses. Property taxes, homeowners insurance, and other fees. Yes you gain equity, but that’s only good if you sell. Renting gives you peace of mind not having to do anything but a monthly payment. I own so I sometimes think is it worth it to rent. lol.

The expenses of his small home. 7k for insulation

Installation is another expense every twenty years or so. God Help anybody who doesn’t replace it.

Same home for 49 years. All the big stuff, roof, plumbing, HVAC replaced 20-30 years ago. Yup, all needs replacing again but...

plus the equity build-up over the years. Also an owner can lessen expenses considerably when something goes wrong with a home warranty account that you pay monthly of $50-70...which is also a write-off expense.

If covered appliances goes, plumbing, AC, furnace...just call the home waranty company and they will repair of replace with a new fridge, washer, microwave etc.

Also, the biggest advantage is you get to write-off your mortage and county tax costs every year. That's major.

I’m not sure anything is a write off unless it’s during a tight timeframe that may allow 2 grand off. But you have to be within that time.

Sorry. Lessons come from experience. Been there, done it.

I use H&R Block too. You’d think they’d know better. Grrrr.

rather than a house that you us for your business?

mortgage and county taxes are major write-off expenses. And if part of you home is a home office, or you rent part of it to a tenant, a portion of the expenses for an HVAC, roof, AC expenses etc. can be written off. It's just how you and your accountant work it.

Having a good accountant is worth it.

but goes down the longer you're in the house

Your property taxes are deductible, but only up to $10K.

Yes, if you use your home for your business, you can deduct expenses proportionate to the size of your house. This only applies if you have a business like a sole proprietorship or partnership. If your house is 2000 sf and your office is 200 sf. However, you can't double dip. If you deduct those expenses for your home office, you have to deduct the amount you deducted for the whole house.

You cannot deduct home office expenses if you are a W2 employee, including if you are employed by your own S corp.

Keep in mind that if you deduct HVAC, new roof etc, when it comes time to sell your home, you have to deduct any amount of your home improvements that you already deducted previously. You only get $250K of capital gains on your personal home tax free ($500K if you are married). Again, you can't double dip.

If you rent out part of your home to a tenant, you can deduct related expenses, but you also have to count rent received as income.

A good accountant is worth it as he/she helps you get a good tax refund every year. And as far as the mortgage deduction going down every year, it trickles down over the years, it doesn't happen quickly so you still get a hefty write off.

if you have a family or even just as a couple. As a single person, I owned a small house for 9 years and just didn't like the upkeep. Since they have raised the standard deduction, owning a home isn't as big of a tax break as it once was. I hate long commutes, so renting allows me to move close by when I change jobs.

Nice peace of mind to have zero payments other than taxes and maintenance.

When we get unsolicited calls asking if we want to sell, I tell them to keep reading the obituary section.

Sometimes I beat myself up, the value has gone up at least $100k since then, probably a loft more. But I was getting old and couldn’t do all the maintenance and upkeep so always had to pay others. That adds up and like people have stated every year there were big ticket items. I’m ok renting, I’m not very materialistic and don’t need much now that my son is older and gone. Try not to second guess yourself based on what might have been.

My sister in S. Florida has no insurance on her home now. She cannot afford it. The dish washer backed up and messed up her kitchen flooring.

If you happen to have a job or SS that gives COLA after a few years the mortgage doesn't seem as bad.

i just dumped a bunch of money into my rental 2flat. what a nightmare. but it’s paying off.
i dont get along well w the kind of guy who goes into construction in general. but contractors….
if they’re good, we get along fine. if not….
i’m a little old lady who knows her shit, and takes no shit. the # of guys who took a look and that was that was just gross.
and no contractor harder to find than 1 to fix the last guys f’ups.

now i need a fair amount of gritty work on my home, and it’s making me crazy just thinkin about it.

I have rented most of my life; paid mortgages on some property but personally received no equity; ex did.
She is not happy as a home owner, because the house and the self get mixed up and material possessions cause unhappiness.

Owning a home makes one a house-holder, a valued status. Why?
It is more like one is house-held, than the reverse. One is less free to pack it up and move. Without a mortgage to inhibit me, I moved to a different hemisphere (on my schedule), still rent but get so much more value for my housing dollar than in the States.

But, if I had valued property instead of adventures, I would become a rich, boring, dead man.
I'm too old to worry about wealth (to be left behind) yet young enough to enjoy the happiness of a full short life ahead.

I'll never have a house.

So beware of these low-priced condos (especially in FL, maybe Vegas, etc.). The monthly fee could eat up any so-called savings. Also, w/ the way the real estate markets have been acting in FL, other places (prices tumbling), I'd be careful, very careful in purchasing something. Perhaps also, your bank or credit union might know of a house on their books, you might get a good deal there too.

And perhaps w/ the real estate markets in some areas tumbling, you'll be able to score a house for a decent price (foreclosed on by bank on previous owner), sure there might be some work and/or fixing up to do, but more than likely, you'll still come out ahead. That's how we got our current home, we wanted to downsize from 1st house in popular neighborhood, which we did, and as a bonus, scored a smaller house (instead of six bedrooms this one had four) in the same general area, same post office, same grocery stores, same everything.

Sure we put a lot into fixing the place, but we are very happy. Especially the part about not leaving the neighborhood.

Good luck to your search, and like I said, you never know what might come across...

Not too hard to figure out what that means.

year to travel, natural disaster whacks you.

Renting downside includes owner who ghosts you and won’t do repairs or corral unruly fellow tenants.

I love the neighborhood, and the landlord keeps the grounds very well it’s kind of a enclosed circle of a complex. I have a second-floor apartment with a back deck that is in the trees and a good grocery store and drug store within walking distance, on sidewalks, so I haven’t had any reason to move and I hate moving probably cost a little more but I don’t have to keep up with maintenance myself. At this moment the cost of living raise in my Social Security is keeping me ahead of the raise in rent lately.

I'm feeling down on myself a lot lately

Everyone is different and has different needs.



I'm not going to list them all but there's also an extensive list of advantages and disadvantages to both renting and buying a home.



I've been watching a frequent amount of earthship built, cob built, and tiny house YouTube videos. There's do many options available and again, another list of advantages and disadvantages for each.

Getting older is no day in the park. The one thing I look forward to nowadays is the 15th of each month; the days I DON’T have to make rent or a mortgage payment.

Unfortunately, homeownership is not even an option in many cities. In places like LA, NY Seattle, Boston, SF, DC, SD, etc. They weren’t even affordable for middle class buyers 40 years ago.

If the nazi takeover of America is complete, it’ll be much easier to move to another country.

It's lovely and large and in a decent neighborhood with good transport links.

But for a number of reasons, I no longer wish to be here and moving/downsizing/renting are all more expensive options than staying.

There is much to be said for the flexibility of renting.

yard work and anything else like that. I was too beat up.

I'm in good shape now and just got back from an hour walk. Now I'm not gonna mow the yard, clean out the gutters or pull weeds.

Clean gutters, etc. Its being arranged by the hoa here

House #1: Bought in 1979 for 85,000. Sold in 2018 for $590,000. Mortgage already paid off. Used the profit to buy House #2
House #2: Paid cash and bought house for $380,000 in 2018. Sold in 2023 for 690,000.

They are a lot of work. But, I enjoy making changes.

OMG --------You are so NOT a loser because you don't own a house!

I rent. And I made a conscious decision to not buy. It's the smartest decision I could've made.

In the early 2000's I had recently graduated from college (after having gone back as a full-time working adult). I was 41 years old when I graduated in 1998. My main career has been in the vocational/career college arena. I had worked myself up to the position of Dean (since I had gotten my Bachelor's Degree I was eligible for the position as it was a requirement)! I was making more money than I ever thought I would've made.

In the meantime, one of my best friends was flipping houses. He was strongly encouraging me to buy a condo. He could've gotten me the best deal possible. It absolutely could have happened.....But, I knew myself. I am a major worrier! Additionally, I can't deal with life if I have a job I don't like or hate. If I'd had a mortgage and everything that goes with that I would have to stay at that job (or find another one with equal pay).

As it turned out, I HATED being the Dean. . Fortunately, I was able to take another position (Associate Dean) which I loved but it didn't pay as much. Then, a position opened up that was even better with the same company but further away (still in the L.A. area but in The Valley). I was able to move to another apartment without any issues. The commute from where I had been living all the way to The Valley may not have been feasible (anyone who knows L.A. and L.A. traffic gets what I'm saying).

The downside is that the rent on my apartment in Redondo Beach (North Redondo - not by the Ocean) has been going up 10% every year (since the pandemic moratorium ended) .... Our Apt. is older but in a really great neighborhood. It's two bedrooms but we've added another roommate (we divided off the living room with room dividers) to help with the increasing rent.

I should be getting my first Social Security payment this month (I turned 66 1/2 on March 1). The amount combined with an annuity I get from my late mom (a couple of hundred a month) should enable me to make it because I have no debt (by design). Also, I'll be able to continue working as a substitute teacher to add to my monthly income

I know this post is long but suffice it to say............One of the best decisions I've ever made was to NOT buy a house....And I feel like a winner!!

I had a great job I was laidoff. I would have been fucked i was almost about to get a place. I moved and rented a great condo, but the pay was low. I found out later I would have lost that job, too.

I took my previous job and hated it. I kept trying to get another one, but I didn't want to buy so I could move. I decided to vest in the pension bc of my age, which I did. I became disabled. So, still renting.

Thank you so much for your story and being nice. I see 2/2 condos in a city about 2.5 hrs away in our budget range

You are very welcome....

I hope you end up in a situation that works best for you...

there’s a lot to be said for renting. No home insurance, no property tax, no maintenance costs, flexibility to move and change scenery.