Rent or Buy?
Should I Rent or Should I Buy?
So you might be wondering if it’s your time to consider owning a home. Renting may seem easier since you can move around. Also, you don’t have to do maintenance on your apartment, in most cases. But you could be missing out on some major benefits of homeownership that you can’t say about renting. You may be eligible for tax benefits if you own your home. Most homeowners will be able to deduct the interest costs reducing your tax burden. This can result in some significant savings. You won’t be getting a tax benefit based on your rent. Also, there’s the issue of equity. When you pay your monthly rent, you are simply exchanging money for a place to live. Mortgage payments build equity. A mortgage is kind of a forced savings plan because you are actually paying it off even while you are living in it. Real estate can be your most valuable asset. While a fixed rate mortgage allows you to lock in your payment, rents usually increase each and every year. And even though you don’t have a landlord to call for maintenance, you are free to decorate and renovate as you wish. Perhaps you don’t like the thought of lawn mowing. You can always buy a condominium where the maintenance company does the outside work. The home is still yours! Most importantly, as the property appreciates in value, or you pay down your mortgage, you get the benefit of that higher value. That’s like money in the bank. You certainly don’t get that with renting. So you may be thinking that while becoming invested in a neighborhood and building roots sounds good, you don’t know if you can afford it. You may be missing out on another fact. In many cases, we can tailor a mortgage payment at or below your current rent payment. If you are a first time homebuyer, there are also many programs that allow for a very low down payment. Food for thought, huh!
Katherine Albano is the Sales Manager and Senior Loan Officer at Riverview Mortgage Corp. For any questions regarding mortgages, please call Kathy at 585-321-0020 ext. 211 or 585-303-3274. Or e-mail her at kathyalbano@frontiernet.net
Riverview Mortgage is a Registered New York State Mortgage Broker with the NYS Banking Department. Loans arranged through Third Party Lenders