Of course it is not. But unlike a youngster, I doubt a 75+ person in good health would be willing to move over a $50 rent increase. Moving takes time, and time becomes more precious as we age.
When I first read this I misunderstood ( . ) ( . )
I wouldnât move over a $50 rent increase, either. But I think Iâm sufficiently well situated financially that I wonât need to. Especially after I unload this house, bank the equity, and reduce my monthly outlays for housing expenses by downsizing.
And homeowners arenât insulated against rising costs, either. Utilities go up. Taxes go up. You get to an age where you need to hire someone to mow the lawn, rake the leaves, shovel the snow, do the handyman work you once did yourself. I think the much-ballyhooed security and financial advantages of homeownership are largely illusory. It varies somewhat by market, but the economists say the net costs of owning and renting are roughly the same.
Rental markets are very, very tight in many places in the country with rents going up much faster than inflation.
I get that, but I guess Iâm willing to pay for liquidity, which is what I recommend to my kids all the time. Renting means youâre a small number of thousands from being able to move; owning makes it much more expensive. I donât expect to convince my wife of that, but itâs what I believe.
If liquidity is important, then of course renting provides that freedom of being able to pack up and take off with a minimal notice and cost.
We sold The Big House five years ago and downsized. First, we didnât like The Big House. We chose poorly when we moved in in 1987 but we stuck it out. It was a fantastic town with renowned schools, and of course that was our top priority. When we looked to downsize, we wanted to buy something cheaper and eliminate our mortgage (in order to give me an opportunity to also downsize my job). There was nothing in our town under $750,000 that we wanted to live in, so we wound up moving about 300 yards over the border into the next town. The schools here arenât as good as in our old town, but we donât care. Location-wise, weâre still right near all our friends, doctors, everything we grew to like over 25 years. And we absolutely love our new house and property. We improved this house to the point where it has just about everything we want, and unless our children move somewhere âpermanentâ (and theyâre both still a few years away from that), weâll stay here.
I agree with @IxnayBob.
I am slowly liquidating some of my illiquid assets (real estate) and paying the capital gains tax instead of 1031 exchanges because as we approach total retirement, cash is king. I am not in the mode of aggressive growth but rather in capital preservation. Inflation doesnât scare me.
My daughter and son-in-law decided to rent (against most peopleâs advice but with our approval) for another 2 years before they move farther into the suburb since their kids wonât be ready for school for another 2 years. The present commute for my SIL is great for someone who works 80-90 hrs/week even though their monthly rent is 5 figures.
^^^Their monthly rent is over $10,000?!
The craziest tear down near me (< 2 miles away) was a home that belonged to the grandfather of D1âs friend. It had been on the market for a long time in all the glossy magazines at $30 million and finally sold for $20 million and was a complete tear down!
Yup!! They like to enjoy life and to a certain extent to reward themselves for their hard work.
Fortunately, my SIL has been very lucky in his careerâŠ
âWhat is not being built are single-level livable, detached homes under 2000 sft that the downsizes want.â - True here too. Property is expensive, and builder can make more profit on other types of housing.
@showmom858 that is so sad to me. When people tear down these great old houses that have history.
Similar boat. Very little single level housing, all well above what weâll get for our current house. Three bedroom condos are really hard to find, too.
WowâŠI didnât even know there were rents over $10,000. We have determined we became kitchen snobs somewhere along the way after redoing ours. I have quartersawn white oak inset furniture grade cabinets, crown, lighting, etc. and quartz countertops, and a sink that could bathe twins. 80% of the âreally niceâ houses here have crappy cabinets, laminate counters, and cheap sinks. SighâŠ
We are also in the camp that there arenât 1 story, 2000 sf nice houses. We would need to spend our sales price to get something comparable at 50-75% of size. Even so, Iâd do it to get away from size and maintenance, but there isnât any inventory for sale.
Starting to see some condex growth in my neck of the woods - two units joined together. Separate driveways, etc.
I agree on the quality issue for a lot of the stuff that is a step down in size. Iâd like smaller but same or better quality. Less upkeep and yard. Seems like a niche where someone could make money because I think a lot of us arenât that price sensitive. I could see sharing a wall but Iâm not ready to have others above and below me yet. Donât want to deal with yapping dogs and clomping high heels as we did in our early adult years.
We are definitely not ready to share a wall. Weâre not even sure about having neighbors. Subdivisions leave us feeling claustrophobic. 5 acres and mowing at most 2 would be perfect. That doesnât happen here as any nice country homes stay in the family for generations.
Plenty in northern New England for sale meeting that description. Most young people donât want the upkeep. Many are old homes and although well cared for, they are out of favor these days.
Iâm not ready for any winters worse than midwestern, although I can bring a tractor and plow 
Trying to get away from that stuff!
We thought about building. Then we axed that idea. Not in our 'hood! Takes too long if you are not a homebuilder. I asked a builder if they would be willing to build a smaller home and make the same profit on it as if they would off the behemoths they build now - if we paid them that. Most builders could not comprehend this and said that they are just not interested in tiny housing. 2,500 was âtinyâ. People donât really need a rambler to get that âsingle levelâ they want. Just a bedroom on the main floor will do. Put the other bedrooms up - the foootprint will be much more manageable.