The Family Home. Rent or Buy?
Whoops-a-daisy! Ah, well. Not my problem. Now. Where to go for a cappuccino?
For years, I’ve watched mortgaged friends suffer relationship wrath and financial stress during the most fun years (20s) of our lives. The advantages of being $300K in debt for many years are dubious at best. You are basically tied to your job. Three out of the five days you work is just to finance your car and home. And by the time you own your home, you’re almost dead anyway. I, personally, think that mortgages are suicide in slow motion.
Australia’s grumpy old businessman, David Koch recommends renting. And this nifty rent or buy calculator that I found on the New York Times site tells me I’d be financially better off only after 18 years of mortgage payments. To top off this madness, soon-to-be oldest mother in England, Elizabeth Adeney, 66, has decided to have a baby so that she can leave her money to someone! What the … ?
The rich old lady who owns my place recently died and left the house to her nephew. Because I’ve kept the place in such good nick, and she’s nicely settled in her underground home, he can now move in. I’ll remember to curb my enthusiasm for home maintenance next time. While it might be better financially for anyone above the age of 30 to rent, it’s a bit of a pain having to move every 5 years or so. Such are the disadvantages of living a more affluent lifestyle than those who choose to work for a bank and ultimately leave the proceeds to an entire generation of spoilt brats.
I’m going to give Melville a go.
