Rent or Buy?

[pekq]

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So what are your thoughts on this? Buying seems like a great deal since you can recoup the money later. Despite that, most people prefer to rent since it might be more flexible and convenient. What do you plan to do?

 

[mimi1]

I bought a condo in Philly since I plan to be there for 4+ years. The Philly market seems to be really hot too, so I hope to make some money on the condo.

It seems like if you can afford it, buying is a good option.

 

[GBFKicks]

So what are your thoughts on this? Buying seems like a great deal since you can recoup the money later. Despite that, most people prefer to rent since it might be more flexible and convenient. What do you plan to do?

There are a lot of factors that go into that decision, and they vary from place to place. I myself plan on renting, but may look into buying depending on how the market is a year from now.

 

[oldtimer]

It depends. I seriously evaluated buying a house but decided it was better for me to rent.

Some reasons for not buying:

1) Property taxes and morgage interest tax deductions don't apply to you because you won't be earning an income. This is a major reason why many people buy houses and you unfortunately don't get to reap the benefits.
2) Houses near school are very expensive. Many were in the $500K range. Therefore, the down payment would be high and the monthly morgage, insurance, and tax payments would be high. You can take PMI if you don't have enough money for a 20% down payment.
3) Time and cost to maintain home. I would rather be focused on doing research or preparing for Step 1.
4) The city is not a hot real estate market. Average annual appreciation is like 5%. The historical money market average is around 5% and there's no risk there.
5) I could go anywhere for residency. I didn't want to be stuck trying to unload a house after 4 years.
6) The rent for an apartment is cheap. I'm going to pay $425/month.

In my case, I didn't think it made sense to buy, but you may decide it makes more sense to buy in your situation.

 

[mikedc813]

Buying a condo is what I decided...err, my parents decided actually. They decided it would be worth the investment now and most likely the property will appreciate over the next 4+ years. Even if it doesn't we calculated that it comes out pretty even without renting (I'm getting a 2 bedroom apartment and turning one into a study). Needless the say if you rent then you have even more profit. I like the privacy first of all. I don't want noisy roommates or noisy apartmentmates. I want silence to study.

Condos shouldn't run you very much, certainly not 500K like someone said!!! In Tampa I found a wonderful condo in excellent condition in the $79K range. So it can be done. As far as maintaining the place I don't think there's much to it. There are condo fees to maintain the grounds around the condo and other than minor things like light bulbs breaking I don't forsee any major repairs. Hope this helps some people.

By the way, my friend bought her condo when she started med school 3 years ago for $50K. It's now worth $70K, so the appreciation can be significant - although it not always is obviously.

 

[GBFKicks]

Buying a condo is what I decided...err, my parents decided actually. They decided it would be worth the investment now and most likely the property will appreciate over the next 4+ years. Even if it doesn't we calculated that it comes out pretty even without renting (I'm getting a 2 bedroom apartment and turning one into a study). Needless the say if you rent then you have even more profit. I like the privacy first of all. I don't want noisy roommates or noisy apartmentmates. I want silence to study.

Condos shouldn't run you very much, certainly not 500K like someone said!!! In Tampa I found a wonderful condo in excellent condition in the $79K range. So it can be done. As far as maintaining the place I don't think there's much to it. There are condo fees to maintain the grounds around the condo and other than minor things like light bulbs breaking I don't forsee any major repairs. Hope this helps some people.

By the way, my friend bought her condo when she started med school 3 years ago for $50K. It's now worth $70K, so the appreciation can be significant - although it not always is obviously.

Well, it depends where you buy your place. $50K or even $79K will buy you a cardboard shanty 10 feet from the highway in Chicago. I would imagine that the same is true in most big cities. However, you can find some nice places for about $250-300k and if you get a couple of roommates, that takes care of most of your mortgage payments--depending on what you pay upfront.

This is a difficult topic to discuss because there are so many variables.

 

[rgporter]

So what are your thoughts on this? Buying seems like a great deal since you can recoup the money later. Despite that, most people prefer to rent since it might be more flexible and convenient. What do you plan to do?

There are so many hidden costs associated with buying. I own a condo in my home state. I am renting it out while I go to school in another state. If I had known then what I know now I would never have bought my condo. I definitely wouldn't buy for a four year period.

 

[zinjanthropus]

Well, it depends where you buy your place. $50K or even $79K will buy you a cardboard shanty 10 feet from the highway in Chicago. I would imagine that the same is true in most big cities. However, you can find some nice places for about $250-300k and if you get a couple of roommates, that takes care of most of your mortgage payments--depending on what you pay upfront.

This is a difficult topic to discuss because there are so many variables.

well, the person who cited 50K and 79K condos lives in Tampa and you can actually get something pretty decent for that amount in Tampa since it has a relatively low cost of living...certainly not a "cardboard shanty"...

 

[snowhite]

If I had the money, and with all things being equal...I would buy. Worth the investment

 

[GBFKicks]

well, the person who cited 50K and 79K condos lives in Tampa and you can actually get something pretty decent for that amount in Tampa since it has a relatively low cost of living...certainly not a "cardboard shanty"...

That's exactly the point I'm trying to make.... by where I mean what city or state or even region of the country--not by the side of the highway or downtown or in the middle of the ghetto.

 

[pekq]

There are so many hidden costs associated with buying. I own a condo in my home state. I am renting it out while I go to school in another state. If I had known then what I know now I would never have bought my condo. I definitely wouldn't buy for a four year period.

Care to elaborate? It'd definetly help me out.