Why do people prefer to rent rather than buying a house?

Even with a “fuckload” of interest (my rate is all of 0.75%), it’s still a hell of a lot less than a “fuckload” of rent would be for a property similar to mine.

We're back to entitlement again.
Terraced houses in cheaper areas used to be classic first homes. You bought one, got on the ladder, then bought what you really wanted a few years later. Before you had children.
Newsflash: if you want your first house tk be a three/four bed in a better area, it will cost you more. It was ever thus.

How is improving your home “dead money”?

There's no evidence to suggest that's a real risk. Lots of areas are forward planning and building accommodation for older people looking to downsize.

So every time you've moved home in your life, you've kept the previous home because of an emotional attachment?

How many homes do you have now?

There are positives to renting for some however those positives run out very quickly when you retire. Ticking time bomb, people struggling to pay rent and everything now when working, when retired they definitely won’t be able to afford the rent and won’t have any asset. Those on benefits will be ok but those with any savings will have to exhaust those savings before they get help. At least if you can buy you have some security, it’s very hard though.

Makes sense @Somersetbaker ^

There is an economic arguement that capital tied up in house you are living in is dead money that can only be realised when you downsize, with an aging population there is a risk that eventually the number of people downsizing will exceed the number upsizing, so prices will fall.

Cheap-as-chips properties are not generally in nice, welcoming, family-friendly areas. That's just a fact. So yes, the vast majority of cheap properties will be in areas that are shit holes. Why are you refusing to accept this widely known piece of knowledge?

They don’t - people who say they do are saying it to make themselves feel better about not being able to afford to buy.

How many 'decades ago' are we talking about? Did you know that until the mid-'70's women in the UK couldn't get a mortgage without a male guarantor (e.g. father). They were only legally able to get a mortgage independently after the Sex Discrimination Act passed in 1975 and even then it took years before banks stopped making it difficult.

Even now, women earn on average less than men so takes longer to get a deposit saved and borrowing power is lower, limiting where they can buy, even in so called 'cheaper' areas.

I rented for 5 years after divorce for flexibility in jobs, so I wasn't tied to one part of the country or even city - so I could easily move if a new job commute would be otherwise be a nightmare. I bought again in my 40's but it was being made redundant that gave me just enough to have a decent deposit for a flat (in London) in a cheap area. Even then I had to borrow 5X my income and my mortgage + service charge was MORE than my previous rent!

Also mortgage costs aren't the only thing to factor in to buying. I'm facing a massive increase in service charges for repairs to the block (roof is leaking) and it's already nearly doubled in the last 7 years especially since fuel costs shot up at the start of the Ukraine war (for block heating). If I sell and move, which I want to do, I'll be up for stamp duty - which is just as much 'dead money' as rent.

It's all very well saying buy a dump that needs doing up but not everyone has the DIY skills to do that. I definitely don't. These days getting reliable tradespeople costs a fortune IF you can get one. I've had huge problems with getting repairs and redecorating done in my flat.

You sound smug and convinced you are right and totally ignore the fact people, even 'decades ago' rented for all sorts of reasons.

I liked renting, it some ways it felt less stressful and less 'trapped' than owning does.

@likelysuspect true 😂 but im happy with my shithole if thats the case 🙌

Because there is emotional attachment to a home and people buying their homes in the 70s did think they were investing in something for their kids.

Yes my dad doesn’t need to live in a care home and have another that he’d lived in for over 50 years sat there, but selling that home is heartbreaking (or can be if there are emotions involved)

Agree with PP and I don't k ow anyone who PREFERS to rent-but some just have to (bad credit history, mixing around for jobs etc). Personally I would move anywhere and buy the cheapest home available rather than give a landlord a penny. I'm glad that laws have been tightened on mould and damp etc..

Fairly sure many people would prefer to buy but simply aren’t able to afford the initial deposit, especially now the government schemes have pretty much finished. Rents by and large seem to be higher than mortgage repayment on equivalent sized properties so I doubt they rent for preference

According to some on here though, you apparently live in a shit hole.

I mean it does depend on the area your in doesn’t it.

Starter home 2/3 bed terrace where i live is 80-100k so 5% deposit is 5k.

standard 3 bed semi, with drive and garden depending on the finish is 140-180k so a 5% deposit is 7-8k

4 bed newbuild £250- 280k

We are in a nice area, if you wanted to go to a more deprived area its cheaper, but overall we are in a cheap part of the country not down south.

Thank god I have that to keep me safe and warm then and hopefully have some choice about where I go (if there are vacancies)

Why would someone need two homes?

It will happen for some people though. All those years paying for your property, and 10s of 1000s on repairs and maintenance, just for it to be sold for your care.

It’s called The Deposit - thats what’s hard to save for when paring rent etc

I think, given the choice, most people would prefer to buy. Some circumstances could mean they’d still choose to rent, a free spirit, working in different countries etc. But I think for most people who are settled in an area for the foreseeable future, buying would be the preferred option. Unfortunately it’s not always that simple.

I am now mortgage free, if I was having to pay rent I would be up shit creek as I can’t get a full time decent paid office job so work as a part time cleaner on MW. I could never afford rent at my age.

Around here, rents of flats will almost certainly be higher than what a monthly mortgage payment would be.

I'm sure he could find someone to leave it to, if only his favourite charities.

This isn’t about me but I’m also in that situation.

I wish I hadn’t believed the OP’s hype about buying, because then I wouldn’t be stuck with 2 mortgages, being a landlord I don’t want to be and additional stamp duty costs when I bought my house.

Renting is great for flexibility and when you want to know all the maintenance costs are covered, or when you want to cohabit with your partner for the first time.

Or OP are you advocating that student should buy property at their university and then sell when they’re done (incurring lots or costs on the way), and that people should be buying houses with partners they’ve maybe only known for 18
months and creating long term financial ties without knowing what it’s like to live with the other person?

Some people don't want the commitment or their job may require frequent re-location, or they are just not settled enough to want to buy where they have to live. Any number of reasons it is not a good idea at any particular stage of life. Not to mention the obvious of just not having money for a deposit, but that is not an active choice it may just be totally out of reach.