Cheaper to Rent or Buy??
 

We are coming to TV next year. I seems an annual lease for a $250,000 home is pretty much a wash to buying one. Are we missing something? Looking for 3/2 with two car or 2 1/2 car garage.
Any input appreciated.

Purchasing gives you a sense of community.
You know your neighbors and they have your back.
When you lease, you may end up in a different Village each year.
At our time of life, it's good to be part of a community.

Barefoot: I addressed a similar thread but did not want to appear controversial so I deleted it. As part of that post I also pointed to the fact that the problem associated with too many rentals is the loss of community.

Like many people I moved my family often for job. We pick a nice neighborhood and it always had mostly other people on the move (transient neighborhoods.

Many of my friends never left my home town and they stayed close , dare I say as extended family. I did miss that because my boyhood friends were the best friends I ever had.

In what weird math universe can it be a wash ? Considering you would be paying 18K per year for the lease plus all utility costs which includes cable, Internet, electric at 4K per year owning is definitely cheaper then renting. Also, how much value do you put on being independent from a landlord who could terminate your next lease at a whim. Moving is a hassle and although not expensive it's not that cheap. Will your security be returned after you move out ? Again, not your choice. Any landlord can nitpick repairs that will eat up your security, good luck getting it back. Again, not your choice. How will your neighbors feel about your transient status ? Again, statistically not good and not your choice. Homeownership is about the pride in knowing you are the king and queen of your castle and not a subservient that can be tossed out simply because your LandLord feels like it. For me, homeownership is priceless and not to be taken lightly.

One issue is how long do you plan to stay. If you are unsure of whether you want to live here then rent. The longer you stay the more attractive owning will look. Another issue is whether you want some time to decide which Villages you want to live in before buying. In that case rent while you look around.

Apples and oranges.

I rented last winter and now have recently purchased. Because I rented, I knew exactly what and where to buy to suit my needs.
If you truly think it is a wash, then buy, I feel pretty sure the property will appreciate and you will more that get your monies worth, or your heirs will.

If we would not have rented for three times we definitely would not have known where we want to live. Our first house we bought was just too small as was the garage. Second choice we knew was not the village we want to live in so we waited our time and the third time was the charm. It's the house we wanted the village we wanted. It runs us between 10,000 and $14,000 to run our houses. ( that's not a mortgage, we have no cable, phone, Internet) This year the last house was considerably more since it was preowned and there were things that needed to be fixed. Renting for a year or 2 frees up enough time to figure out where you want to be and what house you want to live in. Since TV is not cheap rent. Unless someone says they are renting, I have no idea. I did find that at our new house a few people down the street stopped while we were outside and yelled are you renters? So I have found that some are not very nice to those they think are renters. And how did we answer that rude person, we told them we were renters and to move on. That's not the people we want to call neighbors.

Just rent for a short term, like 2 months in a neighborhood where you think you might want to buy. While renting, look all around for a home to buy. I'd rent in Oct-Nov when rent is lower priced, and weather is perfect.

Rent money that way is a good investment in educating yourself. You'll also learn not to move 90% of your stuff from past home. Learn to live with less stuff. It is liberating.

Own or rent
 

Some very helpful information. Thank you. Being an ex condo building converter/owner I am quite familiar with how too many renters can devalue a building. I'm confident the Villages will never reach a 50% level of renters so I think paranoia in that direction is unfounded. Renters like owners come in the form of nice people and jerks. I've been an owner most of my long life but some of my best friends......
The above posts precipitate the following question. Do I dare ask if there are neighborhoods one should GENERALLY avoid? I know, opinions vary but I've been on the planet long nuff to know that every dozen roses has a stem or two with a petal or two that is slightly wilted. This is my whole point of renting. I would rather rent for a year or so in a great neighborhood than own in a bad one. And what makes you all move from a neighborhood? Perhaps this is a less obstreperous way of asking what is good and what is bad neighborhood wise.
I spent last week in TV and generally liked the north 1/2. More crowded but more compelling because of goods and services and it has not been denuded of trees. Looking forward to some constructive comments. Thank you in advance.

More crowded? How did you come to that conclusion? Most lots run from a little larger to quite a bit larger north of 466.


I can't think of any place here that could be described as undesirable by most peoples very high standards. It is pretty amazing, all of it. And people are very proud of their properties and take good care of them.

Hmm...let us see...what villages to stay away from...perhaps you don't want to consider the original and now considered historic villages across hgwy 27/441 - that requires use of what some consider the 'scary' golf cart bridge to reach shopping, dining, entertainment, many golf courses and doing chores if not taking the car. Actually - many of the manufactured homes there have been purchased by the Developer and the historic side is now becoming gentrified - or at least, updated! :)

We on the historic side also suffer from a lack of traffic when compared to other Villages areas. We have no shopping available to us amongst our homes. But we do have to contend with having the only bricks and mortar U.S.Post Office and a convenient gas station and convenience store which can be reached by golf cart.

Don't know where you were on the 'north side' that made you feel houses were closer together; but we in the original Villages suffer from maintaining larger lots and landscaping that has reached the stages of maturity and beyond. And much of that landscaping is 'complicated' by some very unusual ornamental design due to the fact that our deed restrictions are less stringent than other Villages. While that design can make one wonder, it can also provide one with some great big chuckles when enjoying a pleasant golf cart cruise around the streets without traffic on a pleasant evening to check out what's going on in the area.

And what can/can't be said about the newly refurbished and managed country club? - so welcoming. Wonder why everything updated except for the only pool in the Villages with its own waterfall! Golfers did have to suffer some while one of the courses was also updated - however they do that.

Good luck with the house hunt.

Buying only works if you have enough assets & don't have to worry about appreciation. If you are concerned about costs @ retirement age--do not buy-Rent-its much easier to break a lease, than to sell a property under duress.

If you are young, rent also, this way you will not be tying up disposable income in a fixed assed which has really little growth potential & you can't benefit from the growth unless you sell it.

There aren't any undesirable areas, but many are more social in the neighborhood than others.

I'd go for walks where houses are for sale that you like, and talk to residents in neighborhoods who are out in the driveway or walking their dog. I'd have my antenna up to see how they regard newcomers and whether there are neighborhood get-togethers, phone-email contact lists, etc. which indicate interest in including and getting to know newcomers......and renters.

In our neighborhood, seasonal renters' name and contact info is automatically requested by the social chairpeople who do the list and email communications about socials. Other neighborhoods might look down on renters because sometimes prejudice is spread and believed, against the idea of rentals. There will always be some snobs in every community.

I've been in some sort of real estate for over 30 yrs. Depending on the lease/month amount. Figure that $250k invested and earning 8% would yield $20k before taxes. Upkeep here is expensive not counting countless repairs to appliances, pools, hot tubs, lawn maintenance, bug control, monthly maintenance fees, etc. The list goes on and on......... If we were doing this again here we'd rent and leave all the hassels and repairs to the landlord!! Hope this helps - Mallory Voice
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