patrick.net

Unless they get rid of property taxes once the house is paid off, and if you don't cancel your house insurance, then you still have some form of rent to pay.

StoutFiles says

You get to paint your walls any color you wish, without having to clear it with a landlord.

That is the most overrated reason for buying a home. A bucket of paint costs maybe $25. The argument is that if you rent, you can't paint the walls any color you want ( who cares?) Truth be known, every single house I've rented there was a policy that we could paint the interior any color we wanted as long as we painted it back. Given that 99% of all homeowners will paint their walls back to white come the day to sell I fail to see the difference.

Just this weekend I put in 2 new tomato beds, did some touch-up paint in the house, and put up some new shelves. Oh- we rent too.

waiting_for_the_fall says

Unless they get rid of property taxes once the house is paid off, and if you don’t cancel your house insurance, then you still have some form of rent to pay.

My Prop Tax is $580 - You couldn't rent half a garage for that in my neighborhood. It doesn't quite match any rent. You need renters insurance which is not much cheaper than homeowners (around $80/month).

edvard2 says

StoutFiles says

You get to paint your walls any color you wish, without having to clear it with a landlord.

That is the most overrated reason for buying a home. A bucket of paint costs maybe $25. The argument is that if you rent, you can’t paint the walls any color you want ( who cares?)

I think you are taking that statement too literal. What is meant by that is that when you own a home it makes sense to update the home. You can put in a pool for $40k if you want one. You wouldn't do that on a rental, would you? In general, you won't do anything to a rental because your time in the house could be over anytime. (this happened to us many times and always sucked). You also couldn't just break down a wall in a rental. For example to combine two rooms. The life quality in a home you own is different. I am just now finding that out because we have rented all our life. It feels very different for me personally.

So I think the statement was geared towards that concept.

StoutFiles says

I think you are taking that statement too literal. What is meant by that is that when you own a home it makes sense to update the home. You can put in a pool for $40k if you want one. You wouldn’t do that on a rental, would you? In general, you won’t do anything to a rental because your time in the house could be over anytime. (this happened to us many times and always sucked). You also couldn’t just break down a wall in a rental. For example to combine two rooms. The life quality in a home you own is different. I am just now finding that out because we have rented all our life. It feels very different for me personally.

No-I get it. That said- I think its going to mean different things to different people. Personally I don't care about knocking down walls and making drastic modifications. That stuff costs lots of money and my intention is to someday buy a house we like and just live with it. Of course for others that would never do. Our quality of life is ironically higher than most of the people we know who bought. Its a bigger, nicer house and the rent for us is cheap. We've lived here for 8 years no problem.

Did you actually read the entire article? I know it was pretty long (and you saw a squirrel that distracted you), but it seemed to be pretty fair in presenting reasons for and against buying now. Even in your snippet, there is a big condition of "assuming you can buy a home for about the same price as you can rent one." Yes, the point of painting walls is trivial, but apparently one that many people can relate to. If you read the full article, I think it's pretty clear they are saying now "may" be a good time to buy depending on your location, circumstances and other factors. Seems like a perfectly reasonable way of describing the market today.

ch_tah says

Yes, the point of painting walls is trivial, but apparently one that many people can relate to.

Many people = shallow people.

ch_tah says

Did you actually read the entire article? I know it was pretty long (and you saw a squirrel that distracted you), but it seemed to be pretty fair in presenting reasons for and against buying now. Even in your snippet, there is a big condition of “assuming you can buy a home for about the same price as you can rent one.” Yes, the point of painting walls is trivial, but apparently one that many people can relate to. If you read the full article, I think it’s pretty clear they are saying now “may” be a good time to buy depending on your location, circumstances and other factors. Seems like a perfectly reasonable way of describing the market today.

Yes... I did as a matter of fact and I so happen to not concur with the argument at hand for a number of factors, mainly in that it- just like countless other articles like it- rattle off the same tired old arguments. Yes- we are all well-aware of those lovely tax write-offs. We're all aware that if someone owns a house they could easily knock down some walls and so forth.

But for starters, its not like a homeowner is really that different from a renter. Like it or not many areas have very strict rules of what you can and cannot do to your home. For example, where I currently live a lot of the work has to be done by a qualified contractor. You also need to get a permit in many cases as well. In many cases even small changes have to get approved. Then there are many areas that have restrictions about what you can do to the outside of your house- even down to what sort of colors you can paint it and where you park your cars. The list goes on and on. The renter has to get permission to do something from the landlord. The owner has to get permission from the city or some other official. What I got out of the article was that people are willing to pay a ton of money for the warm and fuzzies. That's it. Purely psychological.

Sure- I'll buy a house someday. But its not going to be due to me suddenly being able to swing a sledge hammer and demolish dining room walls.

Oh- and there was a couple of squirrels that ran by the window. One had on a little green hat. Quite amazing.

It's apparently, a great time to rent homes out, and auction them off as well. Wow, yahoo says property taxes are rent free, my monthly property taxes were only $125 less than my house payment when I sold off my junker, finally realizing I could keep that money, investing it elsewhere vs. giving it to the town I lived in, and/or the bank.

klarek says

ch_tah says

Yes, the point of painting walls is trivial, but apparently one that many people can relate to.

Many people = shallow people.

What a shallow person I am wanting to paint my house...and wanting to personalize it and customize it...very shallow...uh huh.

edvard2 says

Yes… I did as a matter of fact and I so happen to not concur with the argument at hand for a number of factors, mainly in that it- just like countless other articles like it- rattle off the same tired old arguments. Yes- we are all well-aware of those lovely tax write-offs. We’re all aware that if someone owns a house they could easily knock down some walls and so forth.

Ok, so your problem is that you, like Klarek, already know everything, so this article was useless to you. Perhaps there are people not as smart as you, and this article provided some useful information.

If you can find the house that's right and
you have cash to pay for it out right,
or you have 45 days of pure hell to go through never 100% convinced you are approved until the day you close, or the banks rejects you an hour before close.

It's probably not a great time to buy in the Fortress though.

This is the part you actually Shoot the messenger!

Jessica Silver-Greenberg

Jessica Silver-Greenberg is a reporter for BusinessWeek.com. She has written previously for The New York Times, Ms. Magazine, Newsweek, and Pacifica Radio's WBAI. Silver-Greenberg has a degree in literature and American studies from Princeton University.

Graduated from Princeton in 2004.

Yea... lots of experience!

ch_tah says

Ok, so your problem is that you, like Klarek, already know everything, so this article was useless to you. Perhaps there are people not as smart as you, and this article provided some useful information.

Did I mention the other squirrel had a moose as a friend?

Even if it was the same....

1) It's much easier to move out of an apartment (less materials, first and last months paid already) then a house (who's going to buy it)

2) Maintenance for a house is much more than an apartment.

"Moody's Analytics predicts that the number of distressed sales will begin to fall in 2013, and that prices will begin to edge upward then."

So to the NAR this translates into "Now is a great time to buy a house".

SubOink says

klarek says

ch_tah says
Yes, the point of painting walls is trivial, but apparently one that many people can relate to.
Many people = shallow people.

What a shallow person I am wanting to paint my house…and wanting to personalize it and customize it…very shallow…uh huh.

I think he meant that a customizable wall color should not be a huge selling point for getting a 30 year mortgage.

StoutFiles says

I think he meant that a customizable wall color should not be a huge selling point for getting a 30 year mortgage.

Correct.

ch_tah says

Ok, so your problem is that you, like Klarek, already know everything, so this article was useless to you.

As opposed to a fresh, new homeowner whiffing the euphoric moment of peak debtitude?

I would imagine the article isn't talking about CA where you can see 3 identical houses next to each other, one for 599, one for 399 and one for 199 and wonder what will happen once interest rates go back up.

edvard2 says

Sure- I’ll buy a house someday. But its not going to be due to me suddenly being able to swing a sledge hammer and demolish dining room walls.

Exactly. It's like suggesting buying a car (for the same monthly payment) is better than leasing the car, because if you buy you can throw on a huge spoiler and lower the chassis if you like.

2 things there. 1) Those things are frivolous and cost money (just "getting" to do them is no benefit necessarily) and 2) very few people care about doing that crap anyway.

Seriously, how many of you renting really sit around thinking, "man, if only I owned this place...I'd put in an island right here!" or, "Man I wish I could knock this wall down and combine these rooms!" People talk all the time about how owners are better citizens than renters, because renters don't care about the property (having no vested interest in it), yet all of the sudden not being able to throw $25k into a new kitchen in their rental unit is eating away at them? Please. Renters don't sit around dreaming of how they'd like to remodel the unti they are renting. They sit around thinking of what they want to do with their place once they buy one. No one renting is seriously lamenting not being able to tear walls down in their home. (Especially because any assertion to the contrary assumes that all renters are involuntary renters. If I go to lease a car, it is with a firm understanding that I won't get to lower it and put 22 inch rims on. Similarly, when one chooses to rent, they know a full kitchen remodel is not in the cards going in)

ch_tah says

Ok, so your problem is that you, like Klarek, already know everything, so this article was useless to you. Perhaps there are people not as smart as you, and this article provided some useful information.

It is a worthless article. It's about as enlightening as those, "5 skincare tips for summer!" articles. How many times do we have to be told to wear sunblock, limit sun exposure between 1pm-3pm, wear sunglasses -especially when out on the water, know the difference between UVA and UVB, and always bring a hat during periods of long exposure? Sure it's 'pertinent' information, but it still makes for a worthless article.

Schizlor says

2) very few people care about doing that crap anyway.

If very few people care about that crap anyway, then why would someone write about it? Either the author and everyone else who mentions it is seriously out of touch with the world, or it is something people (shallow or not) can relate to.
Schizlor says

They sit around thinking of what they want to do with their place once they buy one.

So you ARE saying renters want to own a place to be able to remodel it.
Schizlor says

It is a worthless article. It’s about as enlightening as those, “5 skincare tips for summer!” articles.

Based on the fact that you agree you'd like to own your own house to be able to remodel it, you don't have a problem with the content of the article, you just feel there is nothing new. I guess for those who have just started looking into housing, some of this information may be enlightening.

ch_tah says

If very few people care about that crap anyway, then why would someone write about it?

Because, like the very few people who care about it, the author is a shallow moron.

ChrisLA says

I would imagine the article isn’t talking about CA where you can see 3 identical houses next to each other, one for 599, one for 399 and one for 199 and wonder what will happen once interest rates go back up.

Are you full of crap again? Or can you provide some addresses?