Rent or buy – is it cheaper to rent or buy a home?
Getting a foot on the housing ladder in the UK is now harder than ever before. This fuels the question – to rent or buy? Figures from Thinktank Civitas reported nearly a million more young adults now live with parents. These figures have risen from 2.4 million to 3.4 million in the last 20 years. This dramatic increase reflects the reality that buying a house is simply not an option for many people. So which one is actually cheaper – rent or buy? In truth it’s less about which one is cheaper – and more about your financial situation.
Generation rent
The UK has become a nation of renters. It’s no wonder with higher house prices, higher taxes, higher cost of living and lower wages. Sounds like a recipe for disaster? Well maybe not disaster but it’s changing the way we live as a nation. The solution? generation rent. It’s no surprise the rental market (especially in London) has soared in the last few years. Many people are stuck in the hamster wheel of paying for rent and not able to save for a deposit. Even if you swap your Starbucks for a flask of Nescafe and your daily lunch run for some homemade sandwiches – the chances are you still won’t make a dent in your deposit saving efforts.
The positives
If you’re lucky enough to have family to loan you the money then great – bite their hand off. But for those who don’t have this luxury then renting is the only option. But is this so bad?It’s not all doom and gloom – there are many positive aspects of renting a property. Being able to trial a location, trial a layout of a house, even trial living with a partner. Ultimately, renting offers flexibility that buying doesn’t. Also, the maintenance bills stops with the landlord. So, you can be safe in the knowledge no hefty bills will be heading your way anytime soon.
To conclude – which is cheaper to rent or buy? In the long term a mortgage is cheaper but rates are incredibly low right now. If these rates change dramatically as we have seen before, then many homeowners can be left unable to afford their mortgage. Renting can offer a level of flexibility that a mortgage can’t, and even though renting isn’t always cheaper than a mortgage, it does come with pretty good positives.
Are you looking to rent a property? Check out our properties we have available today.