Thank you for another example of your take on real estate, with renting as the way to go. Which is fine, as I've said, giving your take on a subject. But, allow someone else to give their take, as well--and not call it 'rubbish'. To me, that's what makes the Forum interesting to read--different takes on a subject. Here's an example of what I'm talking about: a response to your post, with a different point of view. Let's start with all those citations you mentioned with data pointing to a slowing economy, an oversupply of housing, declining numbers of buyers, and so on. I didn't pay too much attention to any of it as I was reading your post. Why? Because I have heard it all before and it doesn't change my decision to buy or not. Remember--my decision. My point of view. I've said many times that I buy even knowing I might lose some money on my purchase. The risk is worth it to me to own. For others, the risk could easily be too great or they simply prefer not to own, risk or not--nothing wrong with renting. I prefer the joys of owning to the anxieties of renting and living in someone else's likely inferior space. Remember, it's just my point of view--which can be different from yours. No matter what the market is--good or bad--I always know that I only need to find one buyer. So far, I have been able to--in America during economic downturns and here, as well--as recently as last week. Your '1.64 million vacant homes' gives me no pause, either. The somewhat more important statistic, for me--how many are vacant near where I am selling my property? I've relayed in detail several times before how the buying process whittles down the number of property choices a buyer has from thousands to a manageable amount so I won't go over that again. In my experience, vacant properties haven't meant much. I understand how the buying process works so I know a buyer will eventually come along who is looking for what I am selling--in location, price, size, features, etc. Once again, I am relaying my point of view, with my experiences with real estate. It doesn't mean I am 'talking up' buying real estate--here or anywhere else--or encouraging anyone to buy, as I am not. I'm just showing another side. Next item. It's certainly true that if you rent you can, as you say, 'use your own furniture or hang a painting on the wall.' Some people, though, including my spouse and me, like to do a whole lot more than that with the space we are spending our precious lives in. Owning gives you the freedom to do what you want, with you gaining the benefit, not the landlord. We've been known, for example, to tear out a brand new kitchen in a just-built condo we bought because, although it was new, it didn't work for us--bad layout, cheap cabinets, bad counters and poor backsplash, too small refrigerator with no automatic ice maker or water dispenser, electric rather than induction cooktop, no undercounter lighting, etc., etc. We ended up with what was perfect--for us. We've also grown fond of 85-inch tvs, quality king-size mattresses, big, comfortable electric recliner sofas, oversized bedside tables with lots of storage, good dining chairs that are comfortable for long, relaxed dinners, good lighting, carpets, drapes, and so on. You only go around once--we want to be comfortable, in a space we love. Again, that's just us. That's just our point of view. I'm always reading that one of the big pluses of renting is being able to move frequently--not sure I would want to drag around all of the above that I mentioned from rental to rental--even if the landlord would agree to remove all his furniture, appliances, electronics, etc. When we sell, we leave all of that in place for the new owner, mostly just taking our art, antiques, and personal stuff. So, for us, renting doesn't work. That doesn't mean I'm against renting--it's great for many--especially here. And, that concludes my alternate take from yours. Although you seem to think the only correct answer is renting, there's actually no right or wrong answer--it's whatever works the best for a person or family's situation.
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