STICKER SHOCK FOR RENTERS

I have a friend who divorced many years ago. Once her divorce was final and the property was divided, she proclaimed that there were two things she would never do again. One was to get married, and the other
was to own a home. She argued that she had tried them both once and decided she didn’t like either. 

So, she rented. For nearly 20 years she lived in the same apartment and said it suited her lifestyle. She came and went as she pleased, and maintenance was someone else’s problem.

When COVID-19 came calling, she was concerned that working remotely would be difficult, but as time progressed, she settled into a routine and never missed a beat.

Then a couple of months ago the property management company asked her to sign a new lease. She had expected a rent increase — there had been one every year — but the nearly 40 percent jump this time was shocker. 

She began looking for a new apartment only to find that rents were actually even
higher than her current apartment, even after the increase. 

It wasn’t long before she realized that renting was not in her financial best interest. 

Still, she didn’t want a single-family home and the maintenance obligations that came with it. She had gotten rid of the lawn guy, the pool guy and the housekeeper when she got rid of her husband and didn’t want any of them back. 

Working with a trusted Realtor, she was able to find the perfect townhome in the perfect community — and her mortgage payments are less than her rent had been. She’s all settled in, but now keeps asking herself why she had rented for so long. 

If you’re a renter, perhaps you ought to ask the same question.