10 Answers

That depends on whether you are willing,capable and unwaveringly disciplined enough to wisely and successfully invest every dollar "saved" by renting. 

Long-term returns on balanced stock market portfolios outperform real estate investments. However, since most people don't micro-manage their finances, home-ownership is the smart way to go.

The Australian dream has always been to "Own your own home".I have achieved that but attitudes are changing.I know of people who own several "investment" properties which they rent to other people & rent the house that they live in themselves.Go figure!

Digger's advice on the issue makes sense to a lot of people now-a-days.

Personally,I like the satisfaction of ownership.

If you are young and also secure in your job, I would say buy. If either of those is not the case, I would say rent. Remember that home maintenance goes on forever and can be difficult for an older person to accomplish. Even if you are willing to pay someone to fix things, the efficient ones are too busy, so a reliable "handyman" is difficult to find.

A friend worked for a real-estate agency with many rentals as well as homes for sale. He worked and was paid modestly with enough fringe benefits  and income to gather materials to build hi own home on a small piece of land he bought and move there after three years. He and his wife contenued with the company and advanced his own house and property value until he retired, sold his property and house for an outrageous amount of money and moved to a little house in a European village on the Med. I met them when I went there on vacation and found him to be regreting his move. After that my dreams of moving away from what I have now vanished.

I like free….had to pay $50,000 nearly 20 years ago for what we have. It’s worth $150,000 were it up graded….but then my taxes would rise beyond my present pleasure. Rent free is one less bill, I could do better with less bills so I enjoy pinching pennies hard enough to make an impression. My trash collectors are in rebellion over my outrageous thrift and are refusing to let any trash leak out. They think I may be robbing them by stealth and they will not  let me collect their trash either as they see no profit in it for them. So I can let them choke on their cigars and wait, or remind them of my services to them. For now I’ll wait, but neutral friends know it won’t last.     

If you can swing it and you have the down payment, and you can pay the taxes, it's better to buy it.,b /c that's an investment. And you'll be building up equity and hopefully, can make money on it when you sell it.

Renting means you are not responsible for repairs, property tax or homeowners insurance but you also do not have anything to show long term for your monthly rental payments.

Owning means you are responsible for monthly mortgage, repairs and yearly property taxes and home owners insurance. Plus side, you have something to show for your monthly mortgage.

The question is not so much which is better but what you can handle. How stable is your job? Can you make the payments on a homeowners loan for 10, 20, 30 years? Can you keep up with all the money required to own and keep your own home, month to month, year to year?

I think buying is the best bet, as long as you can manage the deposit and the mortgage payments, one day you will own it, and when the time comes you can use it as payment for your home in retirement.

My mom has lived in her home for 64 years. Can you imagine pouring rent out for 64 years??  
It is not cheap to rent a home, and it IS 'money down the drain', as you've nothing to show for the output. BUT, you need only pay the monthly rent and get renter's insurance. Repairs, yard maintenance, taxes, and house payments are provided by the owner. YOUR responsibility is to take care of the home (because you live there) and pay your rent on time.

If you have the money, and are up for the challenges and responsibility of home ownership, though, it is a very good feeling to call your home your own.  I live in a complex of condo homeowners, and I'm being harassed for having potted plants in my doorway.  I can call my home my own, but I've got nasty people breathing down my neck at the same time, so be careful of WHERE you buy (or rent).  

Another advantage of renting is that if you need to move house due to job-changing, it is easier than trying to sell a house, particularly in times like the present when selling a house is difficult.