Property Ownership Versus Renting

One of the biggest choices many people will make in their lives is whether they should buy a home or rent one for the long term. Each of these choices comes with its own advantages and disadvantages. In this article, we will take a look at the differences between property ownership and property rentals to help you decide which is best suited to your needs.

Property Ownership

Buying a property is an exciting time. You’ll be taken aback by houses and apartments which have been newly upgraded and you’ll be happy to see such a large home inventory. But, owning a property is about more than signing a piece of paper. You need to know that you’ll be responsible for every aspect of the maintenance of the property and you’ll also be responsible for paying taxes and bills associated with the property. 

Owning a property is an investment and it should be treated as such.  Many people now purchase property overseas as well as locally, which allows them to enjoy the lifestyle and leisure its location offers, as well as seeing the property asset rise in value over time. The increase in American nationals investing in the Far East and popular European destinations, such as Italy and the coastal regions of Spain, is significant.

Whether buying in the USA, Mexico or overseas, maintenance of your home is incredibly important. If you have a swimming pool, you need to regularly clean it and you need to inspect it for any possible leaks. The same can be said for the roof of the house.

It is vital to remember that the two most important parts of the house you buy is the roof and the foundation. Neglecting to conduct regular maintenance on these two parts of your home can lead to high financial costs.  There are other expenses that homebuyers often overlook. 

The biggest advantage of owning your own home is that you will not be paying off someone else’s mortgage. The property you buy will be yours. This alone will be a great motivator for ensuring that you keep your home in the best possible condition. Another advantage of buying your home is that you may very well be spending less on your mortgage than you did on rent. 

Property Rentals

When you rent a home the maintenance of the property should be conducted by the owner of the property. This will give you a lot more financial freedom than owning a property. Additionally, you will most likely not be responsible for the accounts associated with owning the house. While you might be expected to contribute to the electricity and water usage at the house, other bills such as taxes would be paid by the homeowner. Many people believe that they cannot purchase a home if they have bad credit – although that has loosened in recent years. 

 

The biggest disadvantage of living in a rental property is that the house is never really yours. You will not be able to make alterations to the property and you may not even be able to put up paintings without the permission of the homeowner.

Additionally, if anything should happen to the homeowner and they are financially unable to keep their home, you’ll be without a place to stay. Then if the homeowner decides that they suddenly want to sell the property, you need to find another place to stay. Once past the term of the lease, most properties move to a month-to-month lease which means the homeowner can decide that they no longer require someone to rent their property and you will be out on the streets.

If you rent a home for 20-30 years, you will not own the property outright as you would if you had consistently paid a mortgage.

 

Deciding whether to buy or rent a property is a big decision.

Before deciding you need to make sure that you carefully go over all the pros and cons.