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Research is showing that the millennial generation is forgoing the once cherished tradition of purchasing a home. For many of us 'Baby Boomers' our greatest asset is the equity we have built up over the years by buying rather than renting. In my case several hundred thousand thousand dollars. If I had chosen to rent through the years and perhaps taken the easy route (no maintenance, freedom to move at will, etc) I probably would have payed about the same in rent as I did in mortgage.
I can see singles or childless opting for urban rentals and walk to work and bars but I can't really understand why families would choose to rent.
Lots of very smart folks on this CD forum so I would appreciate insight. Maybe things have changed and I am looking at things totally wrong.
We can afford to buy a home, but we have chosen not to purchase another home.l
We owned a home. It was great for a while. Then came the boom and we got a lot of strange new neighbors (because anyone could get a mortgage--remember?). So we decided we wanted to leave the area entirely. Then came the housing crash. We were stuck underwater if we did not want to walk away, and we did not want to walk away. The house was like an albatross keeping us in a town that was being overdeveloped and that we grew to dislike intensely.
We actually were really stuck from 2008-2013. When prices came back up, we sold and moved to another city, where we are very happy renting and not being committed to this town or even this country.
We really are not spending any more than we did on the mortgage, property insurance, lawn maintenance, pool maintenance, etc. We live in a nice condo and when something breaks--it is not our responsibility to pay for it. Nor are we responsible for the maintenance fees or any maintenance at all for that matter.
I know conventional wisdom says buy, but I'm not buying that. Maybe we'll buy a home when we decide we are staying somewhere for a long long time, but for now, we're good. Owning a house is not for everyone.
We can afford to buy a home, but we have chosen not to purchase another home.l
We owned a home. It was great for a while. Then came the boom and we got a lot of strange new neighbors (because anyone could get a mortgage--remember?). So we decided we wanted to leave the area entirely. Then came the housing crash. We were stuck underwater if we did not want to walk away, and we did not want to walk away. The house was like an albatross keeping us in a town that was being overdeveloped and that we grew to dislike intensely.
We actually were really stuck from 2008-2013. When prices came back up, we sold and moved to another city, where we are very happy renting and not being committed to this town or even this country.
We really are not spending any more than we did on the mortgage, property insurance, lawn maintenance, pool maintenance, etc. We live in a nice condo and when something breaks--it is not our responsibility to pay for it. Nor are we responsible for the maintenance fees or any maintenance at all for that matter.
I know conventional wisdom says buy, but I'm not buying that. Maybe we'll buy a home when we decide we are staying somewhere for a long long time, but for now, we're good. Owning a house is not for everyone.
Not to mention property taxes, even when we "pay off" our house we will still owe something like $575 a month and its doing nothing but going up every couple of years. That means we have to continue working long long after I want to retire just to service the taxes. The only reason we bought is because the rental situation where we are is an absolute nightmare. Land lords dont fix anything unless the city twists their arms so you could be into a lease and have a water main break below your floor flooding your unit with steam and they dont care (sure you could drag them to court but who has time for that unless your going to get MASSIVE punitive damages for having to waste your time dealing with a slum lord). Most of the land lords had major attitudes do to the low vacancy rates (peoples douchy behavior comes out when the market is not forcing them to be nice and keep rates reasonable)
I am not considered a millennial but I am around millennial's all day- feel like Jane Goodall at this point living amongst the apes.
All the folks I am around would love to own a home, excuse me a baller home but have struggled under student loans and lack of saving to truly afford a home so they rent. I see a lot them buying condos as opposed to single family, I think it is about economics more than choice.
Some people truly like urban areas such as downtown Chicago, New York style- the closeness and being able to walk or uber around while others enjoy the serenity of having space (yard) between neighbors and less noise.
OP made several hundred thousand dollars, but not everyone does owning a home. If you own a home in the same location for many years, maybe yes, but only maybe. Some locations not as much. Some cities have gone downhill. Also, losing a job,not being happy in an area, family issues nec. a move, costly house problems, housing bust in 08 and other factors are/were not friendly to those owning a house in one particular area. Everyone's circumstances are different.
OP made several hundred thousand dollars, but not everyone does owning a home. If you own a home in the same location for many years, maybe yes, but only maybe. Some locations not as much. Some cities have gone downhill. Also, losing a job,not being happy in an area, family issues nec. a move, costly house problems, housing bust in 08 and other factors are/were not friendly to those owning a house in one particular area. Everyone's circumstances are different.
The biggest of those is job loss, if you loose your job in a lot of cases you are compelled to sell regardless of what is going on in the market and you may end up taking a hair cut or having a foreclosure on your record if you are underwater. Very stressful situation,and now that mass lay offs and firings are much more prolific today than in the past it’s a real concern.
I delayed buying a condo until August (36-year-old) due to job uncertainty and existing debts, much of which has become workable finally. I can't imagine how I would have managed owning a place earlier and with it all associated costs, along with the aforementioned job and debt issues. Some of that is on me - no one put a gun to my head about going to college, then law school - but boomers definitely have played a major card in home ownership stagnation.
I delayed buying a condo until August (36-year-old) due to job uncertainty and existing debts, much of which has become workable finally. I can't imagine how I would have managed owning a place earlier and with it all associated costs, along with the aforementioned job and debt issues. Some of that is on me - no one put a gun to my head about going to college, then law school - but boomers definitely have played a major card in home ownership stagnation.
But if you don’t do it your flipping burgers so our generation really did have a metaphorical gun to our head, you either go to college or trade school or your screwed.
Go to a well respected state school, get a useful degree that can land you a job (engineering, Comp SCI, Accounting/Finance) and get out as quick and with as little debt as possible. Go to summer school and get an internship and you can probably get out in under four years. College is nothing more than proving to employers you can jump through the hoops.
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Too many people go to college and see it has a growing experience and getting away from mom and dad. Taking student loans to live in a frat house and party while getting a history degree is stupid. It may be fun but the cost of those four years will eventually bite you unless you're parents were wealthy enough to foot the bill.
that's about how many things can be done between the 2 extremes you portrayed.
But there's definitely way too much of your 2nd scenario, of that we should all agree. Ad for many non-professional technical fields, your first scenario works too. But it's nowhere near an either/or, and thus surely seems like hyperbole.
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. Maybe we'll buy a home when we decide we are staying somewhere for a long long time, but for now, we're good. Owning a house is not for everyone.
