I think I'm with Dan on this one. People are too quick to say that rent is "wasting" money. Sure you're not building equity, but if your home's value goes down a lot, yet you're still paying the same mortgage payment, that's wasting money too. Even a 1.1% interest rate is better than that.
Rent buys you the intangibles Dan is talking about, the prime one being freedom. You should not buy a home for investment purposes generally, but rather because you truly want to live there.
As for expenses, as Dan points out there are many and they are varied. For example, in the DC area we had a snow storm couple of weeks ago and my gutter was damaged, and some tree branches broke because of the heavy snow. Guess who has to pay for all those repairs? Also, rent typically includes utilities, but these are extras on top of your mortgage if you own a home.
If you're under 30 I suggest you rent and live a flexible lifestyle and try and save money.
Rent buys you the intangibles Dan is talking about, the prime one being freedom. You should not buy a home for investment purposes generally, but rather because you truly want to live there.
As for expenses, as Dan points out there are many and they are varied. For example, in the DC area we had a snow storm couple of weeks ago and my gutter was damaged, and some tree branches broke because of the heavy snow. Guess who has to pay for all those repairs? Also, rent typically includes utilities, but these are extras on top of your mortgage if you own a home.
If you're under 30 I suggest you rent and live a flexible lifestyle and try and save money.