A Deeper Dive into a Familiar Question by Someone Who Has Rented, Purchased, and Rented Out Properties
Renting is much better than buying for a variety of reasons mostly having to do with how little of your payment goes toward the principal for many years, and all the other expenses of home ownership.
Payment against Principal is not an expense. It does affect your cashflow and needs to be covered each month, but it’s really a self-imposed investment in real estate, specifically in your home’s equity.
Clearly, owning a home isn’t cheap where most people live in the US. However, there are two critical points that most analyses miss when they argue that those expenses are a reason to not buy.
Why Costs Should (almost) Never be Seen as an Argument Against Buying
Analyses that cite the high costs of home ownership as an argument against home ownership miss several critical points. Most importantly, that the landlord sets your rent based on his costs of ownership, plus a profit margin.