These days many people prefer to rent rather than buy their own house. Why is this this so? Discuss the relative advantages and disadvantages of renting or buying, and give your own opinion. Give reasons for your answer and examples from your personal experience where appropriate.

In most major cities in the west, people are opting to rent a home

instead

of buy.

This

is mostly because house prices have increased dramatically while personal income has not, a trend that means

mortgage

repayments now account for a much larger share of income than in the past. Renters have more disposable income every week than buyers and

this

is a big attraction.

However

, in my opinion,

this

is a false economy and in the long run

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,

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I believe that the advantages of buying a

property

greatly outweigh the short-term savings to be made by renting. While it is certainly cheaper week-by-week to rent than pay a

mortgage

, the renter misses out on the large capital gains to be made when buying a home. When I took out my own

mortgage

on my two-bedroom apartment, my repayments on a $400,000 loan were about $600 a week, compared with $500 for rental value on a similar

property

.

However

, over the past three years

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,

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my apartment has appreciated by more than $250,000, greatly outweighing the $15,000 I would have saved by renting.

In addition

to

this

, my

mortgage

payments secured an acquisition of

property

that will remain valuable for my family into the future.

Financial

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The financial

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growth of

this

sort is not possible through renting. Renters do not only lose out on capital gains, they

also

lose in terms of security and peace of mind. The roof over their heads

once their lease is over

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, once their lease is over,

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is always at the mercy of the landlord, who might at any time decide to sell the

property

. The landlord can

also

put up the rent when they feel the market warrants it.

Further

, unless the renter invests their savings judiciously, the money they save will be frittered on day-to-day life, leaving them very much poorer than the buyer once retirement looms. In conclusion, while a

first

mortgage

will cost more each week than renting, the advantages of buying, including capital appreciation and housing security, greatly outweigh the short-term savings to be made by renting.