You have $400k in cash, buy House with it or rent & invest

[Henry17]

It depends on what he buys. Older properties would need repairs but something new should be pretty maintains free.

He also needs to consider what he could buy for $400k vs what he ends up renting. The property has to be the same value. Comparing a cheap rental to a nice owned property ignores quality of life issues.

[PokerPaul]

thats a very good point i didnt consider completely.

Because one could probably for equivalent monthly payments rent a $500k property, or own the $400k.

Maybe not a huge difference, but yes, you probbably can enjoy a little better lifestyle going the rent route....

[Jimbo]

[ QUOTE ]
thats a very good point i didnt consider completely.

Because one could probably for equivalent monthly payments rent a $500k property, or own the $400k.

Maybe not a huge difference, but yes, you probbably can enjoy a little better lifestyle going the rent route....

[/ QUOTE ]

Not where I live, the opposite would be true.

Jimbo

[Brad1970]

Look at it this way...if you are old enough & mature enough for homeownership...go for it. You'll never be evicted & the rent will never go up.

[MatthewRyan]

I think so many people forget that rents go up every year. And they also forget the value of having you own (much larger) living space, a garage/yard/no one complaing about loud music, etc etc etc

[Moonshine]

I dont think the housing market has bottomed out yet

still though, i think it's a pretty decent time to buy if you're in it for the long term. 30 years from now it wont matter if you're house went down 2% the year after you bought it but recovered in the next 29. Prices have dropped more in the last year than they have in a while

if you choose to invest i wouldnt just go throwing it into the stock market either...

[Tien]

They're gonna keep dropping I certain areas of the country.

I've spoken to many investors in the States that have said that bank owned real estate account for up to 20-25% of homes on the market in some areas. That's huge.

With more mortgage resets bound to happen next year, the worse is still to come.

[Badger]

[ QUOTE ]
And they also forget the value of having you own (much larger) living space, a garage/yard/no one complaing about loud music, etc etc etc

[/ QUOTE ]
What does this have to do with rent/buy? Not all rentals are apartments, not all owned properties are houses.

I rented a $400k house with three friends for $2000/month ($500 ea.) Other people own a condo where they still have the problems you listed.

[Danastasio1]

The quality of my investment decisions has improved immensely since I stopped renting. [img]/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img]