Rent or Own Your Home

When you first leave your parent's home, one thing on your mind is whether you should rent your first home or whether you should get a mortgage.   Ultimately, there are pros and cons for both sides, and while mortgaging a house seems daunting especially with student loans over your head, it may make sense for you.

Should you buy

How permanent is your residency

The biggest factor for buying a house is how long you plan on living in the area.  If it is less than 5 years, then you will probably not gain enough equity to warrant buying a house.  The hassle of getting a real estate agent will most likely exceed the money you could save with the mortgage over rent.

Maintenance

The biggest con for buying is that maintenance is up to the home owner.  It is nice an easy to call up a super to repair something.  This means you should be more careful when buying a used property.

Other Fees

If you want a dog or cat, renters may have to pay annual or monthly fees.  Amenities fees, parking fees, etc. can quickly make your monthly rent much more expensive than you initially thought.

Family

Perhaps you want to start a family.  Then for the same amount as your monthly rent you can mortgage a bigger place, so it can be advantageous to buy a home.