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

Egon12 schrieb:

Significantly under 1000 € annual payment including additional costs, goal to be debt-free within 20 years.

With how much equity contribution?

the plot of land
However, I omitted the extra repayment… including it, the monthly payment is about 1300 euros (approximately $1400).

The discussion also misses the main point: you need to have the willingness to handle tools yourself; otherwise, it’s better to rent.

The decision to buy or rent, single-family house or condominium, is more complex than just money. Neither renting nor owning is a money-making machine.

Do you have DIY skills?
Can you imagine working in the garden after work?
Are you bothered by neighbors living in the same building?
Can you find a rental property with the desired size and features?
Can you secure the necessary financing?
Can you imagine having significant debt?
And so on.

HilfeHilfe schrieb:
This is because rents are still relatively low in rural areas. As rents increase, the desire to own property grows. And everyone defines luxury differently. Our new condominium is by no means a luxury property.

Rents are rising. But the costs of homeownership are increasing even faster.

niri09 schrieb:
Rising rental prices are the reason we are building a house. We are building because existing homes, some of which are older, are excessively expensive and also sell within just a few weeks.

Construction costs are rising even faster than rents.

Evolith schrieb:
To return to the question: For me, owning a home only pays off financially once it is fully paid off, and you essentially have your stone-built savings in reserve. You can think of it as a piggy bank you force yourself to fill. I would confidently say that the majority of renters will never save up enough for homeownership within the intended repayment period (or at least a significant part of it).

That’s not really the question. The question is whether you do better by investing the savings instead. And usually, that’s the case. Owner-occupied property isn’t financially worthwhile if you are disciplined enough. But most people aren’t, so owner-occupation is often still a good idea. Nevertheless, owning property is not mainly about financial advantage but about quality of life.

It depends. A property I would consider renting (single-family house, 200 m² (2,150 sq ft), newly built, good quality) is either not available on the market or, if it is, so expensive that building your own home becomes more advantageous. I have rented a 200 m² (2,150 sq ft) single-family house on a 600 m² (6,460 sq ft) lot for years, so I know what I’m talking about.

Of course, this changes when you consider that many users here pay prices well over 2,000 per square meter for “not much.” In that case, I would rather rent.

Hausbauer1 schrieb:
Rents are rising. But the costs of homeownership are increasing even faster.

Statistically, new rental prices are increasing, sometimes rapidly depending on the area.

However, existing rental contracts often tell a different story.

In cities like Berlin or Cologne, this means that despite having children (and needing more space in square meters), people stay in their current homes. Not because a three-room apartment with two children is particularly comfortable, but simply because the new rent is significantly higher than the current one, meaning you either pay a substantial premium or move further away.