Why is renting a place to live so convoluted?

[Headshotted]

Alright, so, full disclosure here. I'm moving back east with my ex to start over and be closer to family, and give her a better jumping off point financially (That ain't here nor there, we've discussed this, whatever.) I've never had to rent an apartment or a home before, and I'm finding the process extremely tedious and irritating. I've been lucky enough to either be in a spot where I've been able to purchase of have been able to work with family before to be able to purchase a place outright, so I've only ever had mortgage payments and so on and so forth. The credit checks, the background checks, the residency checks, and the application fees that can get crazy expensive! I don't understand it! I get that some administrative things have to be done, but, man oh man, this is a little much! Now I understand why some of the younger generation have such big issues with it, especially with the increases to cost of living and such. This is the first time I won't be able to purchase outright as I'm both transitioning to a new job, getting my place on the market, etc, etc. I never knew it was such a headache! I know you have to take every place with a grain of salt, and that some reviews on places are biased one way or the other but holy heck, this is something else.

TL;DR - Renting blows, I can't wait to sell my condo to buy a home again, and I need a place to live lmao.

[Siress]

My experience with renting in Atlanta was those that had the most formal processes also had the most professional management staff. That professionalism will impact your day to day experience living in a place, so it's of greater importance than many other factors. It also means you're more likely to get your deposit back, IMO, as the poorly run places would keep it as a matter of course.

But yeah, renting blows...

[BrickHaus]

I feel for everyone who is in a renters situation. Especially with rates where they are at. I literally have a single family home for less than anyone can rent for locally.

I have many friends struggling to find a place to live for various reasons from aggressive breed rules, pet rules, and rent rates. then they have to deal with ass hole neighbors and crazy rent rates when they do finally find a place to live.

[Myrkul]

The rent situation is absolutely ridiculous right now. I was lucky enough to purchase my house right at the beginning of the pandemic, when both prices and interest rates were blissfully low. Now though? A one bedroom apartment down the street has the same monthly rent payment as my mortgage does. It's completely insane. When I rented I had to deal with shitty management on a continual basis and a lot of fraudulent misc charges (which I was able to fight and win), but that was almost a completely different world then what the market for housing is like now. Supposedly things are supposed to cool off with the feds raising interest rates, but for the time being the market really belongs to owners unfortunately.

[Chuck E Ducky]

Because everyone before you have found loopholes to rip off landlords. The court system has countered, land lords counter courts counter, landlords counter and the process gets longer and longer and longer. You can thank the lawyers and scammers. It’s a protection process the market is hot right now for rentals so landlords can be very choosy and they will. I doubled my deposit requirements and raised my rents.

It’s definitely better to buy but now is not the time to buy. Anything you purchase will be worth a lot less in 6 months to a year. It’s all going to come crashing down. It’s a massive bubble. Material costs are coming down, Bear market, Inflation, Food and Gas prices is going to crush the working class after they decimated savers by devaluation of the money they already have and spread it out in the name of Fear. Purposeful Incompetence is in full effect hang on it’s out to get bumpy.

[flyweightnate]

Part of the problem is companies like Blackrock buying up a lot of the single family homes, so you're renting from a corporation instead of a person. If you can find a single family owned by a real human for rent, it's worth it; unfortunately you also may need to offer over market to get it.

When prices are as volatile as they are, on everything, property is the last hedge. But then the risk increases to rent it out when you're paying $12 a board for framing lumber - even minor repairs are absurdly expensive, as energy costs work their way into all commerce. It's just not a good time to be anything but an independently wealthy, subsistence farming hermit.

[sniper97]

I have not seen 2x4s @ $12/each, did see $11 little over a year ago. IMHO, housing prices don't crash, could be wrong. Local builder put in 2 foundation, both are under contract. I have heard the Blackrock rumor, have not seen it locally. Housing is expensive.

[glaman5266]

"It's just not a good time to be anything but an independently wealthy, subsistence farming hermit."

Eh... You don't necessarily have to be independently wealthy. People would be surprised at what they can afford if they just cut their costs in other areas. You just have to do more of the stuff yourself. But I'm sure you know that.

A rifle, a fishing pole & a good set of knives help cut costs tremendously. I have yet to buy ground meat this calendar year. But I digress.

[Chuck E Ducky]

Wealthy people are pulling out of the funny money market and buying physical things like land and rental investments. They know what is coming the 1% will adjust at the cost of
producers. Rich people are rich because they know markets they have the capital to ability adjust. The ruling class also play by a rigid system designed to keep them rich. Producers play by different rules designed to give you just enough to keep you happy so it all don’t get overthrown.

Good news for you is selling in CO will net you a good chunk of capital if you get it on the market right now. Do not wait every week you don’t sell will be money out of your pocket. CO is a hot market. Sell right now do not wait every time the feds rase rates you lose. Government have to rase capital to cover the blank checks the wrote during Covid. 14 Trillion and the Government has no idea who it went to. But slow clap for finding 2 Trillion of it. Good job guys. Stagflation is coming I suggest you hold capital invest when it all goes bad. Buy low sell high.

Rent something that fits your needs for the time being when it all comes crumbling down scoop up a deal from someone who has over extended themselves in a down turn. You will end up with a really good chunk of capital if you play your cards right.

[Headshotted]

Oh dude, that's 200% the plan. I'm moving back to MD, so, it's just been heck and a half trying to find a place in the area. I'm drafting up the paperwork this week with my realtor and I should be on the market next week at a minimum. Even without photos there's a chance the place will sell for at market or over because of the way things are.

[Deus Machina]

Just stop drinking Starbucks and eating avocado toast, and it'll be fine.

[flyweightnate]

Or open one of those newfangled fan pages to help pay your bills...

[Cdn_Cuda]

Macdave06, how is the foot-fetish business?

[sniper97]

I am sure this is for alot of people, not everyone. Lower class is getting crushed, very sad. Price of eating out has gone up. Solving the supply chain issues would help alot and ending the Ukraine/Russia war.

[Headshotted]

It's been a wild experience. I was hoping to save some money and live with family until my place sold and I could start putting into a place back east, but, that's not the case. So, if anyone's got any spots in MD, lemme know. This has been a headache and a half as I have a firm start date and am all kinds of discombobulated.

[sniper97]

I think landlords just want to protect their investment and collect their rent.

[SignOfZeta]

I’ve rented a lot, only bought a house once and it was huge massively expensive PITA that continues to bleed me dry 15 years later so I guess I don’t get the complaint. When I rented I paid no tax, never even looked at interest rates, never fixed a roof or bought a dishwasher. Unless you need things like privacy, a garage, ten bedrooms, a large basement, etc I honestly consider home ownership a scam to be avoided.

[BrickHaus]

Im with Siress. Owning is the way to go imo.

I've honestly never rented. I lived with my mom til I had my ish together, then my wife and I bought our home in 2015. Its been amazing. We have steadily improved what we wanted, and we have done a lot of the work ourselves keeping costs down. Im handy enough to keep up with it, and I get a ton of self worth out of making our nest nice. We pay less than 1k a month for mortgage. Though that in and of itself is rare. I watch countless friends without the credit throw $1200-$2500 a month away renting, and they don't have any equity to show for it. They also have shared space with neighbors that suck, and constantly complain about their crappy appliances, room temperatures, ect. Plus at those rental rates, they are not getting anywhere financially.

I have a friend who has barely been getting by, and her rent almost doubled with out warning when her current lease is up 1200 upto 2700 monthly for a 2 bedroom apt with a garage. Shes looking at being homeless if she can't find a new place she can afford. That won't happen to me unless I refinance. Plus in the group garage they have they have had stuff stolen from their cars numerous times.

If anything Ill eventually rent my house out and buy another.

It is kinda nice to fix your own roof.

[lew]

I'm gonna second the requirement for a "dislike" button and am also going to continue the dogpile: owning a house has been way less of a pain in the ass than any renting experience. My mortgage payment is cheaper than any local rent, and I have a shitload of space. I can maintain my house far more effectively and proactively than a complex can maintain a whole slew of rentals. If you want to live in stacked cages, go ahead and rent an apartment. Lastly, I live in the land that zoning forgot. Speedball pitch in the backyard? Only if I want it.

[Chuck E Ducky]

Some of my largest capital gains I have been from home ownership. I started with a two family rented one lived in the other. Lived rent free for years while I did this i was using others money to build capital. I then purchased a home with an accessory dwelling. As long as it’s all rented I’m now collecting a positive cash flow. I’m using others money to pay my mortgage and build equity. It’s a 2nd job for sure but I’m a Jack of all trades and can pretty much fix anything. I don’t pay people to do things I can do myself. I have what I have because of it. I will be retiring at 46 because of how well I have done making moves in the housing market. I’m just waiting for material costs to come back down and my current house will pay the majority of my mortgage on my new home on the massive piece of land I purchased outright because of the capital I was only allowed to do because of my multiple home purchases. You know what every single top 500 Forbes richest people have in common… Real estate!

Key is knowing when to buy and when to sell. Don’t fall in love, don’t get in a bidding war, do your research know what your getting yourself into, and don’t bite off more then you can chew. Now is the worst time to buy wait. The past few years I have been selling building my buying capital. But after the feds rase rates the bottom is going to fall out of it. Let it hit bottom and buy right in a good location and you can’t get hurt. I plan on scooping up some deals when it dose.

[Tarsun2]

i got into a house about a year or two before the pandemic; lucked out there.

[Chuck E Ducky]

I scooped up a ton of land cheap as Covid broke. I got two approved 3.5 acre building lots for less then the value of one in a premium location. The summer New York City was burning I sold a few pieces and even held the note acting as the bank on one making interest on the land on top of the premium I got for it. They recently payed me off but I made $9k in just interest over the life of the loan. Banks were begging me to assume the loan. Nope paper shredder they go.

That was a great time to buy housing market was flooded and rates were so low. These people that are buying now are going to eat it hard when the bottom falls out. But I got a house to rent em.

[Seajay]

The point to owning your own home, aside from privacy and freedom (mostly). You are paying into a longer term profit, or just accessible capital. Renting you are just spending money with zero return. Owning your home is generally considered a safe investment in the investor portfolio.

It largely comes down to accessibility and cost of living though. Renting is great if you don't care about such things.

[Siress]

Renting makes sense for people that are transient(1), incapable of purchasing, or not sure what they want to purchase.

(1) You can estimate how long it makes sense to rent the type of home you want, compared to purchasing something equivalent. The time frames I've seen range from 18-36 months, proportional to the cost of the home. (i.e. cheapest home has positive ROI at the lowest duration)

Btw - just looked up the estimate on the home I purchased last year... If we sold it now, subtracted costs of purchasing and selling, taxes, etc... we'd have made ~50% of our combined salaries just on the real estate. I get where Chuck E Ducky is coming from, but I'm not as much of a gambler - or just not as sure of the information as he's steeped in this stuff every day while I'm just in it as is prudent for myself. I just play the numbers. So, for me, I was happy to lock in the lowest interest rate I've ever seen on a mortgage, and 'time in the market' being of greater value in the long run than 'timing the market.'

Literally - very bottom of this curve... couldn't be happier about that...

[flyweightnate]

I'm gonna add to the trend... but with a caveat.

I've made a boatload off property/ real estate relative to my income. Between my house and my starter house/ now rental, 5 years salary in equity, over a 9 year period. Plus rental income!

BUT.

I did my own work. Drywall, paint, plumbing, flooring, electrical, major appliances, insulation, cabinetry, tile, interior and exterior doors, even a few windows and an auxiliary HVAC. I paid for a central HVAC replacement on the rental. If I had paid out of pocket, I'd have lost at least half the gains, maybe more. Likely enough that I wouldn't have had the cash to move, thereby negating the second half of the gains anyways. I have literally spent tens of thousands of dollars that, on occasion, I barely had, to keep these houses in functional shape. And I've only paid for labor on four projects, total!

I worked with a guy who wanted to buy with 5% down, and that 5% borrowed from his inlaws. It's just dumb at that point. A dishwasher breaks, and you're broke. Taxes go up, and you're taking out personal loans to avoid foreclosure. A storm wrecks your roof, and you commit insurance fraud to cover the deductible. I warned him to have between 10k and 10% in reserve for first year failures.

Worse: you lose your job in a down market, and have to sell at a loss.

There is a lot of risk to being leveraged that way.

With renting, you never can lose more than a month's rent. (Well, two, if you break lease at a bad time.)

There are times, places, and financial situations where renting is absolutely the better option. If houses are too expensive, or too small, or need too much work. If your finances can change quickly. If you might want to move soon! (Which can cost up to 20% of your value, between listings and commissions and repairs and taxes and movers.) Or simply if you're not that handy.

Don't let anyone pressure you into buying, if you're not really, truly, ready. (Not just OP... but generally.)

[Grendel]

I think you give some solid advice here. Home ownership is not for everyone in every circumstance. If I had to move right now for work I do not think I would buy a home I think in this current market I would look for a rental option and try to ride out the coming recession (if we are not already in a recession) and hope that recession does not turn into a depression. Like Siress I was able to sell my home in MA for a large profit in 2021 and lock in a very low interest on only slightly over valued home in SC. Right time, right circumstance situation but if that decision was in front of my now I either would not have sold and moved to SC or Sold and rented a home down here. Would I be a life long renter? No way there are always opportunities you just have to be patient and wait for the correct market [e.g. never sell stock in a down market you will only lock in your loss]

[Chuck E Ducky]

I have lost more then a few months in rent. However I plan accordingly and my profit margins are high enough to compensate for a long time if I had to. My biggest risk was right after a big purchase I tapped my savings and play money for long term investments. If something went bad at that point I would have to tap my emergency funds to cover it. It’s definitely risk Vs reward but You can’t make an omelet without crackin a few egg's. Being Handy is just that the willingness to learn how to do something new and not be afraid to fuck up. Instead of paying someone to do a job I invest in the tools to do the job so if I ever have to do that job again I’m only out the material costs.

For instance I own a field stone covered house. Some of the stones were coming off. So I hired a mansion to repair it for a few days small job. But I told him I will be his labor I will lift mix and do whatever heavy lifting he needs. In the process of a few days I learned everything I needed to know to repair my stone house. This guy was an OG mansion so really knew what he was doing and I picked his brain for two full days (Priceless). I have since done many many projects that would have cost me 10x what it cost me. I even saved money on the initial work because he didn’t need to get help for the day. I learned more in those two days then it cost me for the repair. I went to Lowes and picks up what I need and have actually made money on the side doing work for others. It’s never to late to learn a new trade and you can take the job but you can’t take the knowledge you gain from it.

At the same time I burnt my eye lashes, eyebrows and a good chunk of my hair learning that the furnace view port is not for viewing. The oil burner was just serviced by a “Pro” who put the wrong nozzle in it flooding out the furnace with fuel I go out to see if I can get it going and there was a back draft that ignited the unburned fuel threw that view port and it flashed burned my face. I learned something that day. Don’t do that…. lol

[Tarsun2]

i got my house and most of my rifles pre-pandemic. BUT i missed out on the car... i purchased a running driving altima that i really enjoyed for $900. NOW if it runs its $5,000 automatically. the prices are insane and every time i look to see whats out there, i get anxiety. and thats just a car. i already have a car but want something i actually enjoy. i cant imagine looking to buy a house right now. id probably lose all my hair and have a stroke.

i will add this to my home buying experience.
Shortly after i moved in (even though the house was inspected) the well pump quit. the pressure tank gave out. the check valve was hollow. and the pressure switch was shot.
the septic needed to be replaced but we knew that was going to happen and were able to plan for it.
most of the work around the house im able to do, so its not a huge deal.
the way i see it: i can either work longer house and pay someone or come home from work on time and do the work myself. theres no other way around it.

to quote the late great RedGreen, "if she dont find you handsome, she better find you handy." and im not the best looking guy around lol