Buying Versus Renting - Essay Example

Buying is basically the purchasing of the property where the individual tends to enjoy all rights over his property. The maintenance and every important decision regarding the property is taken by the buyer. The buying may be done by the payment of the full amount or it may be done on a mortgage where installments are paid every month. On the other hand, renting is basically a deal with a landlord to use their property on fixed terms and conditions and vital matters lie in the hands of the landlord. A fixed payment is paid every month in the form of rent. According to the analysis performed by the New York Times and which was updated on the eleventh of May 2011, the current global financial situation is better for the option of buying rather than renting. This is particularly true for people who wish to use their property for periods greater than half a year. The overall financial benefit would be that of $10460 over the six-month period (Conner 2010; Quealy et al 2011).

            Buying makes a person the legal owner of his property. It brings with it a sense of satisfaction that the house that the person is residing in truly belongs to him. He cannot be asked to leave by the landlord as is the case with renting. A person can make any alterations and changes in his property as per his will, without any interference by other people. Buying provides other financial benefits as well. A person receives relaxations in the federal tax payments owing to the reductions of the property taxes as well as the interest of the mortgage. With the rising inflation, the cost of living keeps on increasing. The amount of rent also keeps on rising. On the other hand, the installments of the mortgage stay fixed and do not increase according to this rule. Therefore, the stability in the cost of living is advantageous for the buyers. During the time period that the person pays the lease, he can also use his property for living and utilize it for any other purpose. This is a benefit as a person basically invests for his own comfort and his monthly payment is not wasted but is rather utilized towards the payment of his property. Furthermore, the property values keep on rising with increasing time. Thus, the lease that the person is paying is basically a form of investment and he would not go in loss. This is because the sale of the property after a few years would yield more financial benefit (Conner 2010).