Renting Versus Owning

[pdub]

Everybody with a sound mind says that everybody should own a house. When you rent, you're throwing your money away, so they say.

I believe that's true. You can't say it ain't true. But even if you own, the rent comes due. HVAC package, godalmighty. It's a blower alright, and it costs every bit as much as a blower. But you have to have it, unlike the blower for the car, which you don't actually "have" to have. So average that out over a year, and you've all of a sudden made rent for five or twenty years. And you can't call the landlord and say, "YOUR air conditioning just went out."

[SuperBuickGuy]

move to Maine, you'll never hear "your air conditioning went out"

[Barry Donovan]

move to Maine, you'll never hear "your air conditioning went out"

it fails here first.
it does not know what 30 below is packed away in the garage.

I grabbed at a large panasonic, last years of no electronics..
early 2000s.
love it.
never fails. this is one to keep in the window.
A/c gets very nasty if in the temperature range for bacteria.
maine kills it.
just got to find the tough stuff.

I paid 36k in rent to see dead bodies get hauled off on center st, and wonder where bullets came from..
I am now in public housing, first help ever..
and I love it.

the humility needed for others disabilities has to stay very high and beyond normal boundaries.
Today I had a chat with state police over gene the disco queens torment.
not sure how far the climber will go backwards this time, to make my integrity untrue.

Meanwhile, I am awaiting a normal valorious response to finish off my Veterans Admininstration pursuit..
I have a V.A. home loan certificate in the poorest state since mississippi..

I could pay less to own, even comparing to public housing with rent subsidy.
it is that poor here.

..just waiting.

living here allows me to feel lucky. I have owned 2 places, and handed keys to a rental that was being given up on by its owner.
I have done all subjects, from 1940s furnace to 1940s mobile homes..
onto today.
built a log home, stick built houses, garages,
helped build one as the cutting man, (my foot was very bad then too) for lumber the guy made himself. Very old school satisfying experience.
all from his own land.
most awesome..

electricals unwritten, plumbing.
a big thing for me is hvac. Very tricky stuff.

i am still ready.

..just waiting to gimp my way.

edit:
Admininstration

I meant to say admenstruation.

whatever.
the v.a. thinks I am russian.
bg donov.
the russian spy in the u.s. air force.

[Loren]

"Owning" a house is more of a partnership. It also owns you, your time/commitment/joy/misery. Privacy if you wish, not having a landlord all in your stuff is a good reason to own, but you still probably "rented" the money to buy it with and the landlord for that just comes in the form of the mortgage envelope and the tax man. Mess up and you'll get kicked out as sure as if you started missing the other kind of rent payments. Owning means you have roots...maybe you don't want roots. I know the travelling, the camping trips, the nightclubs...all came to near-halt when we bought this place. But that's OK...I have my space, my cars, the dogs...anyone to come along with a problem with any of that, there's going to be a fight.

[pdub]

But that's OK...I have my space, my cars, the dogs...anyone to come along with a problem with any of that, there's going to be a fight.

Yeah, that's the big "It" right there Loren. And a short little fence (I'm sorry, it's a 'trellis" if we have to go to court) frustrates the hell out of the kids who think they own our yard as well as theirs.

[DanStokes]

After divorces I rented for a short while and I HATED it. I always felt like I was in somebody elses' house. So I'm a home owner type, for sure. My oldest bro rents but he wants the feeling like he can pick up and go at any minute though he's actually done neither for years (though he DOES travel extensively).

Dan

[corvettedad]

Other than when I was surveying with an oil exploration company I rented for 6 months when I first got married, didn't like it, owned my house ever since

[SuperBuickGuy]

Yeah, that's the big "It" right there Loren. And a short little fence (I'm sorry, it's a 'trellis" if we have to go to court) frustrates the hell out of the kids who think they own our yard as well as theirs.

you want to know the funniest thing.... my neighbors. They're from Atlanta and they used to wave, now they look shell shocked. I'm not sure whether or not its because they get the Seattle-glacial-freeze response to waves, or that no one talks about anything most especially not anyone in the neighborhood.... southerner meet scandinavian - if you talk to us, you must need something. If you talk to us without needing something, you must be some kind of special.

I've got to ask them what they think of the passive-aggressiveness of Seattlites.... of course, that means interacting, so it may be awhile before I go that far - I'm the friendly sort, I give them the glacial look with a one-finger-from-the-steering-wheel wave (might be a bit too friendly there, but they are neighbors...)

[SuperBuickGuy]

I can even illustrate this.... a conversation on another forum that started with "I'm going out to test my new tires, wheeling, this weekend" Originally Posted by SuperBuickGuy
if you want company, let me know



Will do, that'd be cool!

Let me translate.... just after the response I made other plans because while the words seem to agree that it's a good idea, is actually a "I'd rather not"


god I hate it here.

my wife and I go back and forth about moving, but we cannot come to a common agreement as to where. I'd rather go to my roots - Eastern Washington (where that conversation would mean we're going wheeling and looking forward to it and the only way I wouldn't go is I'm dead)... She, on the other hand, wants California - and while California is nice where she wants to go isn't (LA)...

[V12guy]

Off topic a bit, but I love SBG's story. Recently a couple moved here FROM Florida. They didn't like it here, said that every one is "Too busy" (and obviously the weather) My brother in law says yeah, we are busy working to save money so we can move TO Florida, what the hell were you thinking?

[JOES66FURY]

First, I see positives to both renting and buying...it depends on the person. I can rent for about the same cost as buying but I don't have to pay taxes or maintenance on the property unless it is something that I screwed up. If I want to up and move I can once my lease is done. If I own, I can't move without the stress of either renting the house out or selling.
If I own a house and I live in a place with an HOA it is like renting anyway because you really can't do what you want.

Second....people are strange. I like it here because there is very little interaction with people I don't know. I don't talk to neighbors and they don't talk to me...it is perfect for a recluse and social cripple like myself. Back home everyone waves and says hi and all that....I don't particularly have an issue with it but I am considered an asshole because I am not that way. I like it here...a halfhearted smile and a nod is sufficient enough...There are some folks I work with from all over the world...some are like me and others can't stand the fact that people generally keep to themselves here....

[Deaf Bob]

Talk to a couple neighbors.. "hi, how are you". Wave at most on the street I meet.
I live in the last house so I see everybody when I leve.
Waving lets them know "I know who you are"
Therefore nobody mucks about on my property

[DanStokes]

We had decent relationships in MI but here in The Southland friendly is mandatory. Being an outgoing kind of guy that's right down my alley. We have good relationships with the neighbors on either side and we're actually quite good friends with the young (to us) couple on the one side. We know the lady across the street well enough to know that she doesn't like us because we're "Damn Yankees" - but everyone else in the neighborhood has been great. Lots of smiling and waving as I take King around the circle with the scooter. Maybe they think I'm nuts and the don't want to annoy me?

Joe - absolutely NO reason to buy into an HOA. That was one of our criteria when we bought here. We were concerned that we picked a neighborhood that wouldn't have a cow when I built and began using the shop and it's been zero issue. Because we didn't know the town when we bought we used a Realtor and we told him up front "Do NOT show us homes with HOAs!" He looked sort of shocked but he followed our instructions.

Bob - The guy across the street (next to the grumpy lady) was the former chief of police (retired) from one of the beach towns. This means he has a weapon and the training to use it, and he can actually hit the intended target. Built-in security guard!

Dan

[pdub]

Our next door neighbor...well of course we have two of them. There's the retarded one with the obnoxious kids, I'm talking about the other one, on the other side.

He's a chiropractor. I don't know how in the hell to spell that, but that's what he is, almost a doctor. Some sort of one degree short of a real doctor. He's about six feet 4, big guy by wide. His head is as big as a Volkswagen. He literally looks down on me from way up there and he calls me "Buddy" because he doesn't care what my real name is.

This is his back door. I'm not much for details, I for sure don't care at all, but this is just a visual. When you let your stuff go to weeds, that's saying you don't care about much of anything. And I don't even want to get off on a rant about his poor dogs in the back yard, wishing they had some company.

[Gary 351C]

I'd rather rent in a place I love than own in a place I hate. We tried owning a house up in the Ca. desert and it was simply too much upkeep for my liking. I grew up in Newport Beach and it's home for me and always will be. The down side is that unless we hit the lotto we can't afford to buy anything here, the townhouses behind us are considered affordable at $600,000. My wife and I think we have the best of both worlds, plenty of space for us and our stuff, I can work on my cars and we live in one of the most beautiful places there are.