Real Estate Information Archive

Some Highlights:

• Owning your own home vs. renting may lead to some great options, such as locking in your monthly payments and having the freedom to customize your living space.
• Whether you rent or own, you have to cover someone’s mortgage costs. You may as well be doing so to build your own wealth, rather than that of your landlord.
• Renting and owning both have up-front fees when you sign your lease or close, respectively. Think about putting that money to work for you! 

In a real estate market where home prices are rising, many have begun to reexamine the idea of buying a home, choosing instead, to rent for a while. But often, there is a dilemma: should you keep paying rent, knowing that rent is rising too, or should you lock in your housing cost and buy a home?

Let’s look at both scenarios and analyze the pros and cons of each:

Renting

With the housing market crash in 2008, many homeowners lost their homes and became renters. According to Iproperty Management, “the number of households renting their home … rose from 31.2% of households in 2006 to 36.6% in 2016”.

Some choose to rent because it is more convenient for their lifestyle. Those whose job requires frequent moves need the flexibility that a 6-12 month lease agreement gives them so they can move to their next assignment!

Many renters believe that renting is cheaper because they do not have to pay for maintenance and repairs. (Not true! Landlords work those expenses into your rent and other fees). Another reason many rent is that they feel like they cannot afford the down payment and closing costs required to buy a house, due to their inability to save much after paying their monthly expenses.

That can be true! Nearly 1 in 4 renters spend at least half their household income on rent. In 2017 the “severely” burdened renters’ rate was 24.7% with 24.9% reporting they were “moderately” burdened.

Renting also brings some financial disadvantages. Homeowners can take advantage of tax deductions that let them claim their property taxes and mortgage interest. Additionally, there is a big risk that your rent will go up every time you renew your lease, as we know the median asking rent has been increased steadily since 1988!

One of the major challenges with renting is that you don’t have a space to call your own. When you rent, you are paying your landlord’s mortgage, and therefore they are the beneficiaries of the equity gained from paying that mortgage.

Now let’s explore the other side: Homeownership

In the past, we have mentioned the many financial and non-financial benefits of becoming a homeowner. So, let’s just focus on the one big difference between renting and owning, the ability to lock in your housing cost!

Assuming you will have a fixed-rate mortgage, your costs are predictable! You will know exactly what your mortgage payment will be for the next 15-30 years. The homeownership rate in 2018 was 64.4%, and has been on the rise. Those households locked in their housing cost rather than wait for their landlord to raise their rent again!

What are the disadvantages of owning a home? Well, it is a long-term financial commitment! It is not easy to pack quickly and move. You will need time and good planning to do it in a short amount of time.

You need to save your money! Getting a mortgage requires a down payment, closing costs, and moving expenses. Again, that will require some savings and planning!

Unless you have a homeowner’s association (HOA) (and you pay an HOA fee) or a home warranty, you will be responsible for maintenance and taking care of the home. This may range anywhere from regular landscaping to major repairs.

Bottom Line

Like everything in life, there are pros and cons. What is better for you depends on your situation! If you are interested in becoming a homeowner and want to discuss the pros and cons, contact a local real estate professional that can help you review your current situation!

Meet with a realtor like Pete Veres, CRS – Certified Residential Specialist & ABR – Accredited Buyers and Seller Representative who can help you navigate thru the process and get the job done for you. He can provide you with a Free Market analysis when you are ready. Pete Veres has had over 25 years of Sales & Marketing experience, excellent negotiating skills and a superb track record.

You can contact him by calling or texting him at 505-362-2005 or by emailing him at [email protected].

He has a great website full of the latest information at www.NMElite.com

Here are also some Free Sellers resources. VIP-Seller-Resources

Every year around this time, we take time to reflect and plan for next year. If you are renting your current home but have dreams of homeownership, your plan for the new year may include buying, and you wouldn’t be alone!

According to the 2018 Bank of America Homebuyer Insights Report, 74% of renters plan on buying in the next 5 years, with 38% planning to buy in the next 2 years!

When those same renters were asked why they disliked renting, 52% said that rising rental costs were their top reason, and 42% of renters believe that their rent will rise every year. The full results of the survey can be seen below:

It’s no wonder that rising rental costs came in as the top answer! The median asking rent price has risen steadily over the last 30 years, as you can see below!

There is a long-standing rule that a household should not spend more than 28% of its income on housing expenses. With nearly half of renters (48%) surveyed already spending more than that, and with their rents likely to rise again… why are they renting?

When asked why they haven’t purchased a home yet, not having enough saved for a down payment (44%) came in as the top response. The report went on to reveal that nearly half of all respondents believe that “a 20% down payment is required to buy a home.”

If the majority of those who believe they haven’t saved a large enough down payment believe that they need 20% down to buy, that means a large number of renters may be able to buy now!

Bottom Line

If you are one of the many renters who is fed up with rising rents but may be confused about what is required to buy in today’s market, contact a local real estate professional who can help you on your path to homeownership.

In 98 of the 100 largest metro areas in the United States, it is cheaper to buy than to rent with a 30-year fixed rate mortgage, according to a recent report done by Trulia.

This report is the Rent vs Buy report. The 97 of the 98 metro areas are on a double digit advantage when it comes to how cheap it is to buy vs rent.

The map below shows the metro areas that were studies and how cheap it is to buy rather than rent. The darker the blue, the cheaper it is.

Here’s how Trulia calculates the true cost of rent vs buying.

Trulia includes all assumed renting costs, including one-time costs (like security deposits), and compares them to the monthly costs of owning a home (insurance, mortgage payments, taxes, and maintenance) including one-time costs (down payments, closing costs, sale proceeds). They also assume that households stay in their home for seven years, put down a 20% down payment, and take out a 30-year fixed rate mortgage.

Six year study chart:

It shows the impact of the median home price, rental price, and 30-year fixed rate interest rate used to calculate the ‘cheaper to buy’ metric.

The average mortgage rate back in 2016 was the driving force for making it 41.3% cheaper to buy a home. Rates have been the highest in six years but buying a home remains cheaper.

Cheryl Young, Trulia’s Chief Economist, had this to say,

“One point deserves emphasizing: The ultra-costly San Francisco Bay Area is not a harbinger for the nation as a whole. While renting may outweigh buying in San Jose and San Francisco, it is unlikely that renting will tip the scales nationally anytime soon.”

Aside from being cheaper than renting, owning your own home has a lot of advantages. Home values are always rising and you wouldn’t want to miss out on equity.

Meet with a realtor like Pete Veres, CRS – Certified Residential Specialist & ABR – Accredited Buyers Representative who can help you navigate thru the process and get the job done for you. Pete Veres has had over 25 years of Sales & Marketing experience, excellent negotiating skills and a superb track record.

You can contact him by calling or texting him at 505-362-2005 or by emailing him at [email protected].

He has a great website full of the latest information at www.NMElite.com

If you’re renting your home you probably already know that rent has continued to rise since you first started renting. You’re already losing money by renting and not having home equity and with rent continually rising you’ll be losing a lot more in the long run.

From the 2018 first quarter median rent numbers from the Census Bureau, this graph shows rent increases from 1988 until today:

Based on this graph, you can see that rent has steadily risen over the past few decades. With this information you can somehow guess that it will still continue to rise. Consider buying a home. Lock in your monthly housing expense. Start building equity.

Talk to a realtor and find out what your options are. It doesn’t matter if you’re thinking of buying tomorrow or a few years from now, learn as much as you can. There may be options available for you today that might not be there when you finally decide to buy a home.

Meet with a realtor like Pete Veres, CRS – Certified Residential Specialist & ABR – Accredited Buyers Representative who can help you navigate thru the process and get the job done for you. Pete Veres has had over 25 years of Sales & Marketing experience, excellent negotiating skills and a superb track record.

You can contact him by calling or texting him at 505-362-2005 or by emailing him at [email protected].

He has a great website full of the latest information at www.NMElite.com

According to the Survey of Consumer Expectations (SCE) by New York Federal Reserve, which has a wide range of topics including inflation, labor market, household finance, credit access and housing, a lot of people under 50 want to own their own home.

The question was, assuming you had the financial resources to do so, would you like to OWN instead of RENT your primary residence?

More than three quarters of people aged 50 below answered they would want to own a home rather than rent. Half of the people over 50 preferred the same.

Here’s a chart with the complete details.

They were also asked about the chances of them owning their own home and 66.4% of those under 50 said they were going to have their own home eventually. Some of the  people over 50 ,23% of them, didn’t want to own their own home.

It seems that according to the survey, most of the young people are still interested in buying.

Meet with a realtor like Pete Veres, CRS – Certified Residential Specialist & ABR – Accredited Buyers Representative who can help you navigate thru the process and get the job done for you. Pete Veres has had over 25 years of Sales & Marketing experience, excellent negotiating skills and a superb track record.

You can contact him by calling or texting him at 505-362-2005 or by emailing him at [email protected].

He has a great website full of the latest information at www.NMElite.com

A lot of people are still renting even though owning a home has great financial benefits. Why is owning a home better than renting? That is a very easy question.

According to Zillow:

“In reality, buying or renting a home is an intensely personal decision, with emotional and even financial considerations that go beyond whether to invest in this one (admittedly large) asset. Looking strictly at housing market numbers, there is a concrete point at which buying a home makes more financial sense than renting it.”

Why is it financial better to own a home? Here’s why.

1. Top 5 benefits

• Owning a home is like having forced savings.
• It is cheaper to buy than to rent.
• It’s the only investment where you can live inside it.
• Locked in monthly housing cost
• Tax savings

2. Net worth is 44x greater than that of a renter if you own your own home.

3.If you bought a home in early 2017, in just 5 years you could build more than $48,000 in wealth.

4. Your rent isn’t just rent. Included in the rent are probably the taxes, the money needed for repairs and profit for the landlord.

However you look at it, owning your own home is better financially than renting.

Meet with a realtor like Pete Veres, CRS – Certified Residential Specialist, SRES – Senior Real Estate Specialist who can help you navigate thru the process and get the job done for you. Pete Veres has had over 25 years of Sales & Marketing experience and excellent negotiating skills.

You can contact him by calling 505-362-2005 or by emailing him at [email protected].

He has a great website full of the latest information at www.NMElite.com

Homeownership is now gaining momentum. It is now rebounding from recent lows and is going the right path. Everyone has different reasons to buy a home. Owning your own home is a dream come true and it gets better.

Here are 5 financial reasons why you should buy a home.

• Equity – With your monthly mortgage payments, you build equity. You can put this towards home repairs or renovations, pay a debt, or even set it aside for your child’s education.. When you rent, your landlord gets that equity.

• Save on Tax – Who doesn’t want to save on taxes? You can deduct your mortgage interest, profits from selling your home, and property taxes. Speak with an accountant to be sure which taxes can be deducted in your area.

• Steady Housing Cost – Rent gets higher as years pass. When you purchase a home, you get to pay a fixed amount each month. You home value may rise due to inflation, but you’ll still be paying the same amount monthly.

• Renting is more EXPENSIVE – You may not believe it, but it’s true. According to a report done by Trulia, it is now less expensive to own a home than to rent. About 37.4% less to be exact. It varies depending on the location, but it ranges from 6% cheaper in San Jose, CA to 57% cheaper in Detroit, MI.

• Home and Investment – Your home is an investment. The price will continue to rise as years pass which will result in more money if you decide to sell it. And you can live in it. You can live your life and build memories and also earn at the same time. Owning your own home seems like the smartest move to me. What do you think?

Meet with a realtor like Pete Veres, CRS – Certified Residential Specialist, SRES – Senior Real Estate Specialist who can help you navigate thru the process and get the job done for you. Pete Veres has had over 25 years of Sales & Marketing experience and excellent negotiating skills.

You can contact him by calling 505-362-2005 or by emailing him at [email protected].

He has a great website full of the latest information at www.NMElite.com

According to Trulia’s latest report, with a traditional 30-year fixed rate mortgage, owning a home is cheaper than renting. This is within the 100 largest metro area if the U.S.

In San Jose, California, the average is at 3.5% less expensive, a whopping 50.1% less expensive in Baton Rouge, LA and, 33.1% all across the U.S.

In 39 states, owning a home is cheaper according to a study done by GoBankingRates. The map below shows the states where it’s cheaper to own a home.

With interest rates at an all-time low, it’s one of the main reasons why it’s cheaper t own a home than to rent. The current interest rate on a 30-year fixed rate mortgage is 3.91%, according to Freddie Mac. The interest rate would have to be more than twice in order for rent to be cheaper than buying.

I’m sure you already know the pros of owning a home: full control of your property, gradual increase in equity, building new memories, and celebrating special occasions with family and friends. When you really think about it, there’s no reason not to own a home.

Meet with a realtor like Pete Veres, CRS – Certified Residential Specialist, SRES – Senior Real Estate Specialist who can help you navigate thru the process and get the job done for you. Pete Veres has had over 25 years of Sales & Marketing experience and excellent negotiating skills.

You can contact him by calling 505-362-2005 or by emailing him at [email protected].

He has a great website full of the latest information at www.NMElite.com

The National Association of Realtors conducted a survey called the 2017 National Housing Pulse Survey. According to the survey, most Americans (around 84%) believe that buying a home is a good financial decision.

Here are the major reasons:

Various Tax Deductions

This could be for state, federal and local income taxes.

Mortgage Paid Upon Retirement

By the time you retire, by owning your home, your mortgage could be fully paid.

Building Equity

Instead of paying the rent, you’re building equity by paying your mortgage.

Increase Net Worth

It increases long term wealth and your net worth.

Stable Monthly Payments

Unlike rent which can increase a huge amount over time, monthly mortgage payments are stable and predictable.

Bottom Line

Homeownership has always been and still is a crucial part of the American Dream. As our local Albuquerque Market is turning around now is the time to buy. Contact Pete Veres so he can help you get started.