what is better owning or renting? What are the pros and cons?

I think having a home of your own is better in the long run for a number of reasons. 1) It is an asset that is worth something. It can be sold or passed onto children. 2) Providing you have a substantial deposit you pay less than rent. 3) I feel better living in a place that I own, I can decorate it the way I want.

Well on the long run i think it depends on your situation if you have enough money to buy a house i prefer that choice, because it is yours, it is quality life and know one can decide for you when you will move out of the property. The rental situation is cheaper, but it is like being a gypsy most of your life.

From my own personal experience and the stress I went through when I bought my own home, the broken chains, the expense, the solicitors, the waiting, the frustration and when something needs doing again it's more expense. I am a free spirit I don't like to be trapped in the same place, I've been here for 3 years now and that's too long. With renting if anything goes wrong the landlord is liable! You can leave in a year or six months just by putting it in writing or not renewing your lease. I think renting is far more pro for me. It has put me off buying for life! Besides as a single person renting is the best option.

I ask this same question along time ago. I think it really depends on the person if they want to make a commitment or not. I can see where renting is good. I also can see where owning your own home is good. As I have done both. If you are only living in an area for a short time. There is no reason to buy a house. As it might not sell by time you move. For those people it is better to rent. But for people to live in any area long time. Then I think owning is a better option.

I think buying is the best in the long run as long as you get a fixed rate of interest mortgage. When I bought my home 9 years ago many friends thought I was crazy as I would be paying slightly more than my current rent at the time. Now the rents have long passed my mortgage they are now almost twice as much as I pay for my house.

The pros about owning are: - You don't get rich by working. You get rich by owning properties... as over a period of time... your property will go up in value. It is free money for doing nothing. - It is nice to own your own house when you retire as you don't have a salary to pay the rent anymore. This will permit you to enjoy your retirement without financial strains. The cons about owning... - Buying your first house must be look at from an investment point of view only if you are going to succeed. It requires making sacrifices on your lifestyle. You must make sure that you buy a house that you can afford. No point in buying something which will kill you financially. You also need to buy that house in the right position so that it will increase rapidly in value. If its value does not go up... you will lose money as you are paying interests on the mortgage. - You will need to start saving money while paying rent for several years in order to have a deposit to buy your first house. - You need a good salary to buy a house as your mortgage will be more expensive than the average rent. - On top of repaying your mortgage... you will need to pay land taxes and spend money on maintenance. A house is like a car. Things break down and need to be repair if you want the house to look good. - Between saving the deposit and your mortgage re-payments becoming lower than the average rent... it will take you 15 years of sacrifices. If you can make it past those 15 years... you are laughing and things start to get easier. By then... you will either sell to buy a bigger house and improve your lifestyle... or you will buy a second house for investment. Which ever path you take... it will put you back to square one with another 10 years of sacrifices ahead. Greed is good as long as you are prepared to sacrifice your lifestyle for money. Which bring the question about the meaning of life. Are we here to make money or to enjoy life? Many people will tell you that you cannot enjoy life without money... but that's debatable. It is only true if your definition of enjoying life is to be able to spend money on things which are not required to survive. Driving a $80.000 luxury car does not make you happier than the guy driving a $20.000 car. Not everyone needs to take a trip around the world to be happy. So by all means... if your salary permits you to buy a house... do it. You cannot go wrong in doing so... providing that you don't go overboard.

Renting is much cheaper, but on long run, if you play smart, owning is always better, because you can build home equity. Renting is giving you more mobility than owning, but you never know if owner is not going to change your contract.

I honestly belkieve it is better to own, rather than rent. With rent, your money is not going nowhere, as you are never closer to owning your own home. The benefits of renting, are that you don't hacve to pay council rates, insurance on the house, water & sewarge rates, emergency services levy, & repairs. With owning ones own home, you hasve to pay all of these/. Nevertheless, owning your own home is security & an assett for the future.

I have done both, rented and owned. I like owning my own home much better. When you own your own place, you have the freedom to do whatever you want to your home. You can paint the walls any color you want. In an apartment you are limited to many things. Also when you own your own home, you have the advantage of tax write offs. You do not have that in a rented space.

as the others said, owning is better than renting...

well, my boyfriend and i rent. for people just starting out renting is probably the best. it's much cheaper than owning a home. with renting you don't have to pay for the insurance or anything out of pocket, but when you own a home you obviously do. later on in life when you have a family, maybe owning a home is better for reasons some people have listed. but i'd actually rather always rent. at least that's how i feel at this stage in my life. who knows though. maybe when i get older i'll want a home of my own.