ᐅ Renting a house or buying/building one? How did you decide?

Steffen80 schrieb:
Never, never, never, never... I will argue this with you until the end. Rent can never be that high! At the end of your life, you will have spent more money on property ownership than a tenant

Because you h

Hausbauer1 schrieb:
Sorry, but you misunderstood that. The better wealth building of property owners comes from the fact that they are, in a way, forced into financial discipline (a kind of self-commitment). Most people don’t normally have this discipline. I know plenty personally: people with decent incomes who barely manage to save enough for three months’ emergency funds.

If you have the necessary discipline, financially speaking, renting can be better. I know quite a few people with significant rental property holdings who themselves live in cheap rental housing.

From my perspective, an owner-occupied property is not an investment but a luxury. I don’t afford it because of financial advantages but because of the benefits in quality of life.

I wouldn’t put it that way. Homeownership is just another way to save. Instead of money in savings accounts, mutual funds, or stocks, it’s invested in your four walls. Most people with equity either spend it on unnecessary things or just smile at their bank account. Right now, I’m sitting with my beer on my terrace, letting the sun roast my bald head. It’s true that tenants are more flexible when finances don’t work out or when changing jobs.

For @Steffen80

The apartment I was referring to (next door to us) is unfortunately no longer available.
This one has about 30 square meters (320 square feet) less living space than we do. The location can be considered equivalent. That means the rent would be reduced by a thousand.

ypg schrieb:
For @Steffen80

The apartment I meant (next door to us) is unfortunately no longer available.
This one has about 30 square meters (320 square feet) less living space than we do. The location can be considered equivalent. That cuts about a thousand off the rent.

And in doing so, you overlook the enormous maintenance costs of a single-family house and the missed investment returns from the stock market and similar options.

Regarding the topic of property value appreciation (only the land increases in value... the building itself does not, as it is a depreciating asset). Anyone building a single-family home TODAY probably shouldn't expect significant value appreciation over the next 10 to 20 years. Trees don’t grow to the sky… admittedly, this is speculation…

Steffen80 schrieb:
And you are overlooking the huge maintenance costs of a single-family house and the missed returns from the stock market and similar investments.

Regarding the topic of property value increase (only the land appreciates... the building does not, as it is a depreciation asset). Anyone building a single-family home TODAY probably shouldn't expect significant value appreciation within the next 10 to 20 years. Trees don’t grow to the sky... admittedly, this is speculation...

Yes, but then you would be assuming that every homeowner is a speculator, which is not the case. My father-in-law recently had his house appraised for 200€ and was happy about it. When asked if he wanted to sell because of the 200€, he said no—he just wanted to know. Similarly, Germans are no longer investing in stocks as much. So currently, they are effectively losing out by just saving money. I often hear that we want to live. We say the same. The solution here: buy a smaller home with less financial strain. I’d rather commute than buy overpriced apartments costing 800k (about 800,000 USD).

Lost returns, Steffen, in the stock market – you might as well compare real estate with a casino, as the returns there are probably even higher. That doesn’t convince me. Stock market. Never.

Steffen80 schrieb:
And in doing so, you overlook the enormous costs of maintaining a single-family house and the lost returns from the stock market and similar investments.

Regarding the increase in value of real estate (only the land appreciates... the building itself does not, as it is a depreciating asset). Anyone building a single-family house TODAY probably should not expect significant value appreciation within the next 10 to 20 years. Trees don’t grow to the sky... admittedly, that is speculation...

Perhaps you (and others) should reconsider the topic and take a closer look at the original question, starting with the very first sentence! [emoji6]
Then feel free to read my first post again.
And no, I am not speculating, I am living! And living very well! Much better than in a poorly managed apartment...