New research from the real estate website Trulia finds that it's cheaper to buy a Columbia SC home than it is to rent one. The advantage narrows considerably, however, when the home buyer uses a low-down-payment loan insured by the Federal Housing Administration.
The average cost of homeownership, including mortgage, insurance, taxes and maintenance, is 38 percent less than the cost of renting, according to the latest Trulia data. This is an even bigger gap than last year, when Trulia estimated homeownership was 35 percent cheaper.
Reasons Buying a Columbia SC Home Is Cheaper Than Renting
One reason for the improved conditions to buy a Columbia SC home is that the 30-year fixed interest rate for mortgages has been lower this year than last. And the other is that rents are rising faster than buying a Columbia SC home because of strong demand.
For many people, the down payment is still a barrier to buying a Columbia SC home. And for people who lost a home in foreclosure, it might still be a while before they can buy. Even though it's a good time to buy a Columbia SC home, many renters are stuck in place. 74 percent of renters have incomes below $50,000, compared with 41 percent of homeowners.
58 percent of renters said they would be unlikely or unable to come up with $2,000 within 30 days to cover an unexpected expense — never mind a down payment to buy a Columbia SC home to start with.
The reverse is true for a typical Federal Housing Administration loan with 3.5 percent down, which requires upfront and monthly mortgage insurance premiums, and builds equity much more slowly. In that case, the advantage dropped to 25 percent. And in some areas, the advantage was 10 percent or less.
Buying a home with an F.H.A. loan is still less expensive than renting almost everywhere if you plan to stay for at least seven years and can benefit from the mortgage interest tax deduction. But financing a purchase this way could be more costly than renting for more mobile buyers, particularly younger people.
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The confidence level towards Columbia SC real estate is on the rise according to the latest Zillow Housing Confidence Index. Homebuyers generally feel more positive about the Columbia SC real estate market now compared to the beginning of the year. The index was 63.7 in January, but increased to 64.2 during the summer.
The Housing Confidence Index is measured on a scale of 0 to 100, and readings above 50 show a positive market sentiment. Sub-sectors within the index look at buying and selling conditions, predicted changes in home values, market trends, home affordability, home buying plans and attitudes towards home ownership. Residents in the areas surveyed reported increased overall confidence in the Columbia SC real estate market.
Younger Renters See Themselves Buying Columbia SC Real Estate
Younger renters were most optimistic about their future home buying prospects, and some 82% of those aged between 18 and 34 were pretty confident they would be able to buy their own Columbia SC real estate someday. In comparison 64% of those aged 34 to 49 felt this way, and just 48% of those aged 50 to 64 thought they'd be able to buy their own Columbia SC home.
The younger generation also have a much more optimistic view about the Columbia SC real estate market in general, and a 33% expected property values to rise more than 6% annually over the next 10 years compared to just 21% of middle-aged respondents, and 15% of those falling into the older age group.
Although strong aspirations are no substitute for financial capacity or credit worthiness on a mortgage loan application, feedback from millennial renters is significant because it confirms that they bear relatively few psychological scars from the housing bust, and because the attitudes of this generation will drive housing trends in the decades to come.
Experts point out we need this generation to feel confident about home ownership, and we should want them to buy regardless of the fact that they may initially struggle to purchase a home.
Follow news on the Columbia SC real estate market and the housing industry overall by periodically checking back in the Columbia SC Real Estate News section of our website under Columbia SC Real Estate Categories.
The Columbia SC housing crisis is facing a whole new and different problem in the future, as Baby Boomers retire and are forced to spend more for housing than any generation before them.
By 2030, the number of adults age 65 and older will more than double to 73 million, according to a report by the Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies and the AARP Foundation.
Many of these retirees will need to put so much of their income toward housing — more than 30% — that they will have to cut back on other expenses like transportation, medical care, even food, the report found.
More Seniors Owe More Money on Columbia SC Housing Than Ever Before
A growing number of seniors are carrying mortgage debt into retirement, with more than 70% of younger Boomers ages 50 to 64, and 40% of those age 65 and older still owing money on their home in 2010. Even worse, they owed even more money on their loans, which is putting many older Americans in a "financially precarious" position, according to the report.
Adding to Boomers' burdens, less money is expected to come in. Over the next decade, the number of households age 65 and older living on less than $15,000 a year — below the poverty level for a two person household in 2014 — is projected to grow by nearly 40%.
The report recommends a variety of fixes for this Columbia SC housing crunch, including property tax relief for seniors, increased federal rental assistance and improved programs to help seniors "age in place" in their homes, instead of in costly institutions.
In 2011, just one-third of low income seniors who were eligible for federal rental assistance received any assistance at all.
Get more tips and articles regarding the Columbia SC housing crisis by checking other articles we have for you in the Columbia SC Real Estate section and the Columbia SC Real Estate News section to your right under our Columbia SC Real Estate Categories.
Over the past month or two, it looked as though the Columbia SC housing recovery was beginning to soften. According to an article at RisMedia, the results of Fannie Mae's National Housing Survey for August found that even though the jobs market has improved this year, consumers are still concerned about their income.
Columbia SC Housing Recovery to be Slow and Steady
The number of people who feel now is a good time to buy a home has dropped for the second consecutive month to 64% which is 6% less than in June. This has led to Fannie Mae's predictions that 2015 may not be a breakout year for a Columbia SC housing recovery after all.
As of now, gains in the jobs market this year haven't yet translated into sufficient increases in income to generate increased consumer confidence for buying a home, even though interest rates are still hovering around all-time lows.
Those who believe that prices will go up during the next year remains steady at 42%, but the numbers who think prices may go down increased to 9%. However, the number of respondents who think interest rates will go up during the next year dropped by four percentage points to 50%.
Just 64% of respondents thought it was a good time to buy a property, equaling the all-time low, and at the same time those who think now is a good time to sell also fell to 38%. The percentage of respondents who thought it would be easier to get a mortgage increased by just 1%.
The percentage of people who said they would buy if they were going to move dropped to 64%, while those who thought they would rent increased to 32%. This is the narrowest gap between these two percentages for more than a year.
Some 44% of respondents to Fannie Mae's survey expect their personal finances to improve over the next year, but those who think their household income is higher than it was a year ago dropped to 23%, a full 5% drop. The percentage of respondents who feel that household expenses have increased over the last 12 months remained steady at 36%.
Follow news on the Columbia SC housing recovery right here by periodically checking back in the Columbia SC Real Estate News section of our website under Columbia SC Real Estate Categories.
There are no stats (that we know of) for just how many Columbia SC renters become homeowners because they love their pets too much to give them up, and often renting is not an option for pet owners.
Approximately 8 million animals end up in shelters each year, and moving-related issues are among the most common reasons for giving up a pet. In an American Humane Association survey of 93 shelters across the country, "Moving" was the most common reason given by owners for relinquishing a pet, and "Landlord won't allow" was the fourth most-common reason for relinquishment.
Columbia SC Renters With Pets Having Trouble
A new survey by website Apartments.com found that 72 percent of Columbia SC renters surveyed said they are pet owners; a slight dip from 75 percent in 2013, but still much higher compared to just 43 percent in 2012.
The majority of pet-owning Columbia SC renters faced some difficulty finding an apartment that allows pets.
The most popular types of apartment pets cited by those renters surveyed in 2014 are: Cats – 41 percent; Small Dog – 39 percent; Medium/Large Dog – 34 percent; Other (Fish, Bird, Small Mammal) – 13 percent.
Being a pet lover can cost you. The survey found that more Columbia SC renters are being asked to pay for the pleasure of having a pet. Close to 80 percent of respondents said they were required to pay a pet deposit, up from around 60 percent in 2013. This year, just over half of Columbia SC renters paid more than $200 annually in pet deposits and monthly fees. Since the cost of renting with a pet adds up, Columbia SC renters searching for the most value in their next apartment may want to ask about what specific pet amenities are included within the building and its individual units.
Many Columbia SC renters are turning to home buying because of the increased difficulty and expense of renting an apartment or condo with a pet included in the lease.
If you own a pet and are finding it tough continuing to rent, contact us and let us help you find the perfect home for you and your pet.