When did you stop renting?

September 11, 2004 5:36 PM

When did you stop renting?
posted by the fire you left me to Home & Garden (40 answers total)

Two years ago -- age 35 -- bought our first home. Feels good - highly recommended.
posted by davidmsc at 5:39 PM on September 11, 2004

I both own a home and rent because the place I own isn't near the place I currently work. My rent is criminally cheap, so it's easier than buying a different place for the short term. Plus, I have a tenant at the place I own, so it balances out pretty good. I did quit renting for a few years in the nineties when I swapped work for rent and I'd do that again if I could, it was an excellent arrangement.
posted by jessamyn at 5:48 PM on September 11, 2004

About 2 months ago... and yeah, it is really, really cool owning a home. (Gotta go mow the lawn now, though...)
posted by ph00dz at 5:53 PM on September 11, 2004

we had a house built about six years ago, it was one of the most miserable experiences in my life. At this point we are considering relocating and are seriously considering renting instead of buying.
posted by busboy789 at 5:54 PM on September 11, 2004

Two years ago. I was 28, my husband was 34.

It does feel good. But it also feels like a lot of work. If you're in an expensive area (like the Bay Area, where I am), you're most likely buying a fixer, and if you're buying a fixer, you better reeeeeeally like fixing stuff.
posted by padraigin at 5:56 PM on September 11, 2004

If you mean renting my abode, I still am.
If you mean another sort of renting, I'll give that up after I've paid off my credit cards..

Why?
posted by dash_slot- at 6:10 PM on September 11, 2004

When I found work that would provide me with housing.
posted by stavrosthewonderchicken at 6:17 PM on September 11, 2004

Water pipe sprung a lieak today. Would have been out a week and a half's pay for the 2 hours it took to fix if I was the one on the hook for paying for it.
posted by Space Coyote at 6:19 PM on September 11, 2004

Last December. Bought a condo. In my 50s. It's really nice to be building equity rather than pissing away rent every month.
posted by languagehat at 6:20 PM on September 11, 2004

This May when we bought a house. I was tired of pissing away my money as well, though having poison ivy in the front yard is almost as annoying.
posted by codger at 6:26 PM on September 11, 2004

Bought a condo at age 25ish. Bought a house this month.

Anyone want to buy my condo? Nice enough place, make a great vacation cottage. Acclaimed ski hill 30m drive away, huge lake, lots of wineries, lots and lots of great fruit during the summer, etc.
posted by five fresh fish at 6:27 PM on September 11, 2004

I rented an apartment in college. After I graduated, I moved back in with my parents for about a year and a half. In exchange for eating their food, I did chores around the house, such as painting, cleaning, lawnwork, and computer support. I also helped take care of my grandma, who was living with us (until she passed away).

I immediately found a job, amassed a hoarde of money while living at home, purchased some "grown up" furniture, then bought a condo and moved out at age 23. One of my friends did the same thing, though he ended up buying a house.
posted by Sangre Azul at 6:39 PM on September 11, 2004

where the condo, fish?
posted by ethylene at 6:43 PM on September 11, 2004

oh, and whenever possible, it's always a better investment.
(renting now, planning somewhere soon)
posted by ethylene at 6:58 PM on September 11, 2004

I bought when the space I needed (wanted?) became cheaper to buy than to rent. At the time that was at three bedrooms. The best part about buying is having the monthly expenses for the most part capped. Taxes go up a little bit every year, but pale by comparison with the mortgage, and there is always some ongoing maintenance, but the landlord no longer sends a letter every year informing me of another rent increase.
posted by caddis at 7:49 PM on September 11, 2004

Water pipe sprung a lieak today. Would have been out a week and a half's pay for the 2 hours it took to fix if I was the one on the hook for paying for it.
posted by Space Coyote at 6:19 PM PST on September 11

Dude, it's all about the Reader's Digest Fix-It guides, the DIY Network, and the guys at Home Depot. We've had exactly one repairperson since we bought this place, and it hasn't been updated too much since it was built in 1928.
posted by padraigin at 8:14 PM on September 11, 2004

eth: Here.

Noteworthy idea: the amount of money you put down on a house may, provided you invest it well, turn out to provide a better return than purchasing a house.

If you were purchasing a $200k home, you'd need about $20k down. Calculate out what $20k well-invested would bring in ten years, versus the house, and take all the home-owning costs into consideration, too. Might be worth renting after all...
posted by five fresh fish at 8:35 PM on September 11, 2004

I bought my house long, long ago, about a year after graduating from college. I now have about 10 months left until my mortgage is paid off. Strangely, when I mention this to people, they usually suggest that as soon as my house is paid off, I should sell it and buy a bigger place. I guess life without debt is just too alien a concept to some people.
posted by SPrintF at 8:38 PM on September 11, 2004

Nearly three years ago, when it became clear that it was going to cost more money to continue renting than to buy a place.

Besides, my books were breeding like rabbits, and I was running out of space.
posted by thomas j wise at 8:44 PM on September 11, 2004

padraigin: Does home depot sell back hoes? If not I don't think hat would have been sufficient :)
posted by Space Coyote at 8:45 PM on September 11, 2004

I'm thinking about buying a condo at the moment though, depending on how my new job works out and whether I feel like sticking around for a long-ish amount of time... still seems like a big investment though.
posted by Space Coyote at 8:46 PM on September 11, 2004

When I found Peerflix
posted by stbalbach at 8:49 PM on September 11, 2004

In about 20 days from now. I just signed the bid acceptance forms today for my new home, my first.

I'm single, and I really didn't like sinking my money into something I didn't own. But houses are large things with large mortgage payments. The solution to this was to buy a two family home with a friend of mine. He is taking one unit, and I am taking the other. We are doing this who written-out contract and everything, but it is a solution that is going to, we believe, work very well for both of us, and our mortgage payment between us are only slightly more than our apartment rents. (But that is not fair because I have a very cheap apartment.)

I want to have a dog, something hard to do in an apartment. I want my own place to make my own modifications. A yard to hang out in. Achieving the things I want.
posted by benjh at 8:52 PM on September 11, 2004

I just bought a place and went to extreme lengths to do so. I work in Manhattan, and there a small studio can sell for as much as $500K (no kidding), so I bought a place in Chicago and worked out a deal to commute to NY once a week. Still cheaper, and best of all I have more own place, more room, and am making money. I plan to buy as much as I can over the next five years.
posted by xammerboy at 9:12 PM on September 11, 2004

impressivo. let me know if you need tenants either place.
do you take the train or drive?

fish (why do i see abe vigoda? who i love in a bud cort way):
if u don't mind telling me about the extent of the "condoness", if i can't swing it by the year of the rooster i may know someone who would, maybe wants it sooner. i will inquire if u don't mind if u wanna mail me info.
posted by ethylene at 9:21 PM on September 11, 2004

padraigin: Does home depot sell back hoes? If not I don't think hat would have been sufficient :)
posted by Space Coyote at 8:45 PM PST on September 11


No, but I think they might rent them.
posted by padraigin at 10:08 PM on September 11, 2004

I went back to renting earlier this year. Owning sucked. After three and a half years of owning I hated it: it was ridiculously expensive to the point where I was unable to save anything, restricted me to living in the shittiest of neighborhoods, was a total time sink, and made me feel ever more paranoid about sticking with my job.

Now, instead of a broken down house in the ghetto, surrounded by hostile, irresponsible, and inconsiderate neighbors, I live in a gorgeously rennovated apartment, with more square footage than my house had, in a historic mansion on a tree-lined street, and have a landlord who is downright eager to cater to my every whim, all for less than two thirds of what owning was costing me.
posted by majick at 10:09 PM on September 11, 2004

We just moved in to a fixer six months ago. It's hard, but worth it.
posted by jragon at 10:31 PM on September 11, 2004

There are a lot of reasons not to own.

My share of rent is $225 a month in a neighborhood where the average home sells for close to half a million. It seems much more worthwhile to rent in this nice city neighborhood than it would be to own in the distant suburbs. Plus, with my low rent I should be able to pay off my car loan and student loans several years ahead of schedule.

As someone who hates even basic housework like dishes and vacuuming, the idea of painting, worrying about roof age and dealing with burst pipes sounds awful.

Also, I have not lived in the same city for more than four consecutive years since birth. I don't plan to stay where I am for the long run. Buying and selling each time I moved would probably lose more money than I'd be putting into whatever house I owned.
posted by croutonsupafreak at 11:13 PM on September 11, 2004

In minus 4 weeks. (Subject to acts of God).
posted by ascullion at 3:34 AM on September 12, 2004

I bought a condo when I was 26, sold it two years later, rented for a year and then bought a house when I was 29. Sold that just before I turned 31 and moved to San Francisco. Now I am back to renting, but want very much to own another house or condo. Home prices here are relatively high, but I am determined (plus stubborn) to feed my real estate jones. Now, at 34, I'm trying to get my finances in order and save up a down payment. Ideally I'd like to buy apartment buildings and retire early off the income.
posted by bendy at 4:07 AM on September 12, 2004

Not sure I'll be able to make the jump for sommmme years (if ever). Not possible to even buy somewhere small round here unless you're earning $100k a year (or until the supposed crash turns up). Sad that, but better than the alternative!
posted by wackybrit at 4:39 AM on September 12, 2004

7 1/2 years ago. I bought a condo in a renovated historic railroad building. Property taxes for places on the historic building register are 1/2 to 2/3 the amount of a similar property in a similar area. It's appreciated hugely and given me an opportunity to quit my job and live off the equity for a year while I explore art. We do, however, wish we had our own outside space for the pooches and an herb garden.
posted by yoga at 6:03 AM on September 12, 2004

I bought a place in 2001. One bed/bath, living room, dining room, office, kitchen, front and back porches. The condo payment and mortgage payment together are about the same as what I was paying at the last apartment I rented.
posted by emelenjr at 7:44 AM on September 12, 2004

7 1/2 years ago for me too. We were in our mid 20's. Bought a duplex and let the tenants pay for the mortgage which works out nicely.

We each pay $75 per month to live here and have discovered that nearly everything is tax deductible for the house.
posted by ugf at 7:49 AM on September 12, 2004

sprintf: But do consider taking out a new mortgage on your place, and investing that money. Interest rates are about as low as they're going to get, you get to write off the loan interest against your taxes (in Canada, at least; I'm sure it's the same in the USA), and you can find investment vehicles that are guaranteed to return all your money in the end, plus pay dividends in the meantime. Basically, money for nothing.

eth: please, do. Spread the word!
posted by five fresh fish at 9:50 AM on September 12, 2004

I stopped three years ago, after two years of living, with my wife, in my parent's apartment.

House hunting became a mania.

We found a two family on a 1/2 acre plot bordering on a small forest. In the fall and spring, herds of huge vicious wild Turkeys grave in our backyard.

With the rental contribution, we now pay about $500 a month towards the mortage.

*feels smug, beckons disaster*
posted by troutfishing at 10:23 AM on September 12, 2004

Oops - that should have been "graze", not "grave".

We don't eat the turkeys.

We probably should. They move in big packs, these 30-60 pound birds, and would probably eat US if we got too close.
posted by troutfishing at 10:25 AM on September 12, 2004

I owned a home about six years ago, before I went back to graduate school. I have a full-time job now, but it's only guaranteed for a year, so I'm still renting. The thing I miss? Being able to paint it how I wanted to, and being able to experiment with home decor and whatnot in general. Setting up an apartment is very different than setting up a house. It becomes more personal, I think. Also, you have to work around what others have done. I would rather like a solid color wallpaper than the flowery wallpaper I have in the bathroom right now, for instance.

Oh, yard stuff is kind fun too, to an extent - although I never want a huge yard. I don't get all excited about laws generally. However, my late father came up with the idea of planting wildflowers at my old place - I mean, hundreds of them, a big four foot wide space, maybe 20 feet long (I can't remember, exactly). I want to do something like that again.

Oh - about three years ago, I went by the old place, and the new owner had mowed all the flowers down. I could hardly believe it. They were gorgeous.
posted by raysmj at 8:07 PM on September 12, 2004

Not yet. Every year, I think: this is the year. But not yet.
posted by chicobangs at 11:18 PM on September 12, 2004