Depending on your age, family status and income, there are always pressures to live a certain way and spend a certain amount of money. For most families, the opinion is that it is better to buy a house and deal with a mortgage instead of renting. The reasoning behind this is so that the children will have a home to grow up in and even inherit in their later years, which is true even if the parents sell because they will be moving up the property ladder and buying something more valuable. Rental accommodation is thought to be the option for singles and young couples who have yet to really settle down and start a family, because their living arrangement is flexible and they will not be tied down to a specific place, or even to each other, if worse comes to worse.
Is this really the case though? The truth is that it comes down to several individual factors. Deciding whether to rent or own must be considered on a case by case basis. Although the eventual plan for the vast majority of families is to own a house and stay put for the sake of the children, there are some families who simply cannot afford to take on a mortgage just yet, or who move often enough to never benefit from getting on the property ladder. Often it is best for low-income families to stay in a rental property for as long as it takes them to either start making more money or to save up for a home of their own. This will give them the financial freedom to provide for themselves and their families properly in terms of nourishing meals, school fees, clothes and other unforeseen expenses instead of spending every spare penny on the mortgage and hoping that the bank wont decide to repossess their house.
Renting is also a great option for younger people who are often driven to travel and explore new places and situations instead of staying put in one spot for 15 to 30 years until the mortgage is paid off. Renting gives anyone with the tendency to explore the freedom to do so without heavy financial obligations. As well as this major feature, renting also gives some people with a lower income, or who rely solely on their own income, to live in a high-end apartment because the rent is lower that mortgage payments would be.
Mobility is also one of the keys to renting. Houses for sale are usually in suburban areas and this means that the owners need to rely on their vehicles to get to and from the center of the city, to work and back, and anywhere else they need to go. Apartment rentals or house rentals can be found in the middle of city centers so that no car is necessary and the renter is free to walk to many popular destinations, as well as to many of the amenities they will need to use on a daily, weekly or monthly basis. Renting has many positive qualities that are often overlooked, so if you are debating whether to rent or buy, think carefully about your lifestyle.
