On 6/11/2013 2:19 PM, Steven Schveighoffer wrote:
Define financially better off :)
You have mo' moolah. Is their any other definition?
And this is not even a fair conversation, because there are so many variables to consider.
I'd like to pop that default conception that buying is financially better than renting. It's only true if real estate values appreciate faster than inflation plus taxes plus real estate commissions, which is hardly a sure thing.
(A lot of people overlook property taxes and capital gains taxes when they make these calculations. I know one guy who cashed in his stock options and bought a house with the proceeds, only to be forced to sell it a year later because he couldn't pay the upkeep and taxes on his salary.)
I can't even recall anyone remembering that selling a house costs you a 6% commission to the real estate agent. Poof! There goes a big chunk of your profits right off the top.
Housing prices have to go up a lot to counter all that.
