5 benefits of renting vs. buying property

Written on Thursday, 10 December 2015.

Buying a home is one of the biggest decisions a person makes in their life, which is a very good reason why you may want to put off making that decision, at least for a while anyway. This may seem like a strange thing to say, but stay with us for a moment and all will become clear in due course.

1. Ownership is not necessarily compatible with a modern professional lifestyle

If you’re in business or involved in a high-flying career, the last thing you need is a heavy-weight asset locking you down to one location. The modern world of business involves frequent travel and usually requires plenty of disposable capital, which you won’t have if it’s tied up in paying for your home.

2. Lower overall costs

There are considerable costs involved with home ownership. As a renter, you’re not liable for those regular expected costs, but there are also some extra hidden advantages you may not have considered yet.

First, you won’t need to insure the home, since you don’t own it. Plus, if something does happen which causes serious structural damage to the property (provided it’s not your fault), you won’t have to pay any costs for repairs, etc.

Don’t forget about all the taxes and fees that home owners have to pay, as those can sometimes be the most painful part of owning a property.

3. No struggle to get finance

Unless you’re already rich enough to purchase a home with cash, you’ll need to get some kind of finance to make it possible. This is a lot harder than you may think, even if you have a fairly good income.

Banks are extremely cautious about lending these days, and they require huge amounts of reassurance that you’ll be able to repay them before they’ll give you anything. In addition, you’ll also need to make a substantial deposit, sometimes as much as 20% of the value of the property.

As a renter, you’ll also need to make a deposit, but it’s usually not more than one or two months rent in advance, plus you get the money back when you move out.

4. No burdensome debt

When you buy a home, it’s normally a liability for 20 or 30 years (perhaps even longer if you re-borrow to make improvements or carry out repairs). Only after that time does your liability get converted into an asset and, if like most people, you can only afford to make the minimum monthly payment, by the time you actually own the home, you’ll have paid thousands of pounds above the original price of the property.

5. An easy short-term option

When you want freedom and mobility, renting allows you to have far more options than buying. For certain people such as those who work for airlines, in the military, or students, it makes far more sense to rent, as you could have to move far away at a moment’s notice.

If you’re still pondering over whether to rent or buy property, know that most web based estate agents will agree with all of the points outlined above. They’ll also help you to take action by finding a suitable property for you to rent in your desired location.

Please note that all property prices in this article are subject to change. You should always contact the sales representative for the up to date information.

While every effort has been made to ensure the accuracy of the information presented on this page is up to date and correct, Buildington accepts no responsibility for any errors contained in the information, or if the information is not current.