Please consider the following excerpt from a post I wrote that was originally published on the personal finance blog Get Rich Slowly (and later here): …if home buying is like a savings plan, it’s probably the worst savings plan on Earth. Would you voluntarily sign up for a savings plan where well over half of…
Tag: rent
Improvement in Seattle Home Prices vs. Economic Fundamentals
Here’s an update to the area-wide price-to-income and price-to-rent ratio charts we first posted back in April. These charts are based on per capita income, “Median Contract Rent” (from 2005 adjusted using the “rent of primary residence” component of the CPI), and Case-Shiller home prices indexed to the county-wide median. They are not intended to…
“Throwing Away Money”
One of the reasons we would often hear people use to justify overspending on a home during the bubble was that they wanted to stop “throwing away money” on rent. I would hope that by now most people have realized how ridiculous that concept is, but I thought it might help dispel the notion if…
News Roundup: Time to Rent, Tax Credits, Indices…
Here are a few relevant news stories that have popped into my inbox in the last few days: Money Magazine: When it makes sense to rent (Seattle is #1—woo!) Seattle P-I: Tax credit down-payment plan waiting for IRS Seattle P-I: Dueling indexes: How much are Seattle-area house values down? USA Today: Condo market fights to…
Poll: How much of a discount have you negotiated in your rent?
Please vote in this poll using the sidebar. This poll will be active and displayed on the sidebar through 05.02.2009.