From a New Homeowner: There's Good in Renting

I am fortunate to own a home for almost two years now. It's a small but good-sized home in a decent suburban neighborhood. It's the type of place where neighbors say hello without feeling too awkward, where kids still, by and large, play in the streets, and people plant flowers and tend to their small lawns with meticulous care. It seems primarily filled with retirees, though many young couples and families have moved in too. Having returned from nearly a decade of city life (and never having had those experiences growing up), that type of place felt very foreign and uncomfortable to me at first. Yet, it's become home to me, to us.

Prior to that we were renters, like 33.8% of the U.S. population (2000 U.S. Census). In looking back, there were many benefits of renting I didn't appreciate then. Don't get me wrong- I love being a homeowner, but it's idealized. Realistically, it only takes one or two bumps in life- an unexpected illness, a lost job, etc. - a few missed months of mortgage payments before a family could be faced with foreclosure. A lot can happen during a 30-year repayment period.

Losing my house is a fear, but not an all-consuming or even primary one. The reason why I'm feeling this uncertainty now is because my husband is going to apply for jobs that will bring him better personal well-being but greatly decreased income- we're talking salary reductions that are tens of thousands of dollars less per year. Ultimately, it will be what is best for him. Knowing that no one has guaranteed job security, especially in a new job, I feel it's important to consciously remind myself of the good in renting. People get attached to their homes. I like mine, but if needed, we could sell and go back to being happy tenants without feeling too defeated. Truly believing that and having a hand to hold throughout is comforting with all of the uncertainties life can bring.

On to the memories!

Our first apartment was really his bachelor pad. I moved in after I graduated from college. It was a classic typecast of New York City living - chipped and peeling lead-based paint, high ceilings, no elevators and dismal laundry facilities, rodents and roaches aplenty, and exorbitant monthly rent. In summer, the temperature would soar to over a 100 degrees Fahrenheit with air conditioning. In rainy weather, water would leak through the walls. In winter, we didn't always have hot water. Initially, I detested the entire arrangement. The city was noisy, dirty, busy...too much of everything. I felt gritty and overwhelmed all the time from the reverberation of the subway.

The Good - The charm of NYC won me over, mostly. There's something magical about a place that can make living in terrible conditions feel glamorous. I didn't have to spend a lot of time in my actual apartment. I was paying for the ability to hop downtown whenever I wanted on an all-day Metrocard, eat incredible food at affordable prices (I once got swordfish from Little Italy delivered to my door!), and be able to legitimately call myself a New Yorker. And when I felt down - after climbing nearly 100 stairs with bags of groceries, or circling our neighborhood for an empty parking spot for over an hour - I would remind myself that there were surely people who would rather live there than where they were at that moment.

Rating: 3/10 - I endured, but having grass under my feet and better breathing conditions now, I would be hard pressed to move back to that building.

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Our second apartment was in a garden-style complex in our current town but a few miles over. Instead of hundreds of neighbors, each building contained four individual apartments. The hallway light bulbs would often go out and the laundry room was reminiscent of something from the original Saw movie, but it was rent-controlled, clean, and well-maintained otherwise. Each apartment had ample closet space that I still miss. The landlord repainted and provided a new refrigerator for our move-in date. The only pests were seasonal ants that would march in occasionally and noisy upstairs neighbors whose teenager liked to watch porn loudly, played (terrible) loud music, and would place their cellphones on the floor nightly. The phones would chime every time a text message was received. It went off often. The complex used separate privatized companies for waste disposal and snow removal; the former was very reliable and always available (dumpsters, recycling bins) while the latter did not always clean up the parking lots well. Parking in itself was guaranteed for one car per apartment. This forced us to share a car (not terrible) but that "guaranteed" spot was anywhere within a three-block radius and not always easy to find after 10 pm, particularly on weekends.

The Good - I adored this apartment. I was comfortable there, despite the slight annoyances, and loath to leave. It was centrally located in town and within easy walking distance for several delicious restaurants, a comfortable laundromat with a mini arcade, stores, a movie theater, and library.

Rating: 7/10 - My only regret is not opting for a 2-bedroom while living there. Months after we moved out, I would look at the apartment complex longingly. Life there was simple whereas my new home (built in the 1940's) requires regular attention and energy.

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Overall Positives to Renting:

• Lodging with minimal commitment. A one-year lease? Sure! A two-year? You're pushing it, buddy. 
• It's more affordable than owning a home, at least monthly. My NYC apartment was still $600/month cheaper than my monthly mortgage payment now. If I didn't have student loans to repay I would have pocketed some for savings and used the rest to travel. Plus, as a renter I wouldn't need to pay property taxes or maintenance costs. The tax deduction for mortgage interest payments doesn't compare with the financial flex I had in renting. Give me controlled rent and a place with room for my family to grow, and I could be a tenant for the rest of my days. The benefit of owning property is the equity in it. If you are in need of cash and have to liquidate a fully paid off property, there is some comfort in knowing you have that option. There is also some heartache in letting go of something you probably owned for a long time.
• Having my building super on speed dial as opposed to fumbling with a slew of tools or contractors in case something goes wrong. Luckily, my husband is pretty handy and what he doesn't know he'll admit to so we get professionals in before we break something. He has done an excellent job in fixing things around our house. My first building super was so-so. My second was phenomenal.
• A minimalist mindset. I owned much less renting than all I've accumulated in my short time as a homeowner. When we moved from our first apartment we fit all of our belongings in the back of the smallest U-Haul and a single trip with our 4-door compact car. We didn't have much by way of furniture; we didn't even own a bed but had been sleeping separately on a futon (that we threw away) and an air mattress (which had a patched hole that wasn't worth further repair with duct tape). When we moved from our 2nd apartment to our house, it was a different story. We made two trips with the same sized U-Haul. If I were to move from our house now, it would take another size truck entirely.

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If you're in an apartment and hate it, work toward your goal of owning. You'll get there. And if you're in an apartment and love it...kick back and enjoy. These are difficult years of struggle but formative and good.