I think renting stuff makes sense a lot of the time. If you have to over commit yourself so that you can buy, it definitely makes no sense at all. Property is still significantly over valued even though we've been in recession for a couple of years and the future isn't guaranteed to pick up in the next year.
However, the thing with renting is the price goes up. Most years.
The thing with buying - assuming you're on a repayment mortgage, is that one day IT WILL BE FREE :) Yours!
That's the attraction of buying to me, as otherwise when you get to 65 you'll still be paying significant rent. Which means you need to save more for your pension. (I'd be interested to see the maths on the how much more?)
The decision to rent or buy is very dependent on inflation and future tax laws, which are hard to predict. Nevertheless, this New York Times rent vs. buy calculator is useful:
However, the thing with renting is the price goes up. Most years. The thing with buying - assuming you're on a repayment mortgage, is that one day IT WILL BE FREE :) Yours!
That's the attraction of buying to me, as otherwise when you get to 65 you'll still be paying significant rent. Which means you need to save more for your pension. (I'd be interested to see the maths on the how much more?)
Anyways just my 2p.