As a senior is it a good idea to buy a house or stay a renter?

Question

We lost our dream house when the  furloughs were forced on State of CA workers. We'd been homeowners for 34 years.
We've been renting a lovely, but expensive, house for 3 years & am thinking it may be better to buy because it just seems we are throwing money away.
Sure, if anything breaks we just call the property management & it gets fixed at no cost to us.
The biggest draw back with renting is we have no tax breaks. This year was horrible because my retired husband went back to work 2 days a week (saving up for a vacation). We ended up paying another $7,000 in income taxes & I don't want to give the government anymore money!
The houses in this area of California are starting to get more expensive as the market recovers but now would be a good time to buy. There's a possibility they'll go much higher.
At 64 we're pretty sure we'd never pay a mortgage off but payments on a house in our price range would be less than our rent.
Is it worth it?
I hate the actual moving part but we are still both active so could take the hassle one more time.

Armchair Goddess #1 · Accepted Answer

You might be able to get a really good deal as seniors if you buy a repossessed home, especially if you or your spouse are military veterans.

I bought an eight-room house in rural Missouri in 2007 when it was a buyer's market (after the GOP-caused housing and credit market collapse that began in 2004), and paid only $38,000 with a low rate of interest.  The interest rates remain low to spur more economic recovery, so you should probably look into a buy.

Rocky · Answer

I would rent my residence and look for a "Lot' or plot(more than an acre)" of land out in the rural area or mountain where insurance prices etc. are cheap for it but you get the deduction on taxes for your mortgage or get a great location lot (in town usually 1/3 an acre) where the house has been torn down you can get a modular home set ion it have it inspected so any problems are fixed while under warrantee and repairs can be eliminated for probably the rest of your life.
     I live in a small town in Northern CA where its cheaper to live we don't have expensive restaurants - but there are nice ones and the city is cheap now but growing Sacramento is south and Chico is north within an hours drive which is about the same time getting through traffic can be in larger cities to the nicer restaurants.  but because its all highway well till you get into the city's like Sacramento the car gets better mileage - small towns seem to have nicer people but not as good job openings but lots of volunteer work and that's to me is good to stay busy for a good cause and because its cheaper you won't need another income.  The mortgage should be less than your rent or about the same according to down and credit rating.  Its cheaper to get a repaired done because it costs you less for a licensed company to do the same work as it is in LA area

Kini · Answer

The furloughs were one day a week. Because of that you couldnt pay your mortgage?

Forget about  buying. Go and find a seniors apartment where you pay 1/3 of your income for rent.

The Distraction Potential of Certainty · Answer

It really depends on how much room you need and I really don't see any difference between paying rent and paying a mortgage, in the end we all die so what's the purpose of accumulating property that unless you have relatives, it just goes to the state anyway, best to remain flexible as a renter than remain chained to a property that is either in a declining neighborhood or you end up with a rotten neighbor that you're stuck attempting to tolerate because you're just as trapped in your house as they are.

mayo_carl · Answer

only if you can pay it off before you die.
after a home is paid off, is the time when you get to enjoy the extra money.

Landlord · Answer

Yes, you should buy, something you can afford to pay for after you retire.   64 is still young, you will need housing for another 30 years or so.

Anonymous · Answer

always better to buy. if its possible . home loans are credit builders and why pay someones morgage when it may be possible to pay your own. email me and i may be able to help point you in the right direction

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As a senior is it a good idea to buy a house or stay a renter?

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