Would renting make you bitter?

doire_2

Dan: wrote: »

Your a bit bitter aren't you?

Yeap im bitter that while house prices keep falling im missing out by renting.

SingleSue

I must admit, it doesn't bother me renting.....either when we did it privately or now as tenants of a housing association.

A home is what you make of it, be that rented or purchased.

I am certainly not bitter or envious.

Saying that though, my experience of owning a property was not exactly brilliant, especially when drug addicts bought the house next door and started stealing our milk from the doorstep, having violent arguements with the local dealers and having the police doing drug busts!

doire_2

neas wrote: »

My experience of renting:

1. Coudln't decorate, had !!!!!! white walls for over a year
2. Decoration was not nice, holes and screws left in walls, carpet cut wrongly so could see floorboard, cheap vinyl bathroom flooring cut so could see floorboard
3. Maintenance was sub-par, because landlord didnt live their and treated it like a business repairs were minimal and took a while to get done. Boiler was 20 years old, kitchen was 15 years old and greased up by previous tenants. Window frames were rotten (yes rotten).. single glazed and full of mould in interior and exterior. Had to use dehumidifer and mould spray to keep it in check.
4. Had to live beneath loud neighbours with a loud sub-woofer who thought putting washing on at midnight would be a good idea.
5. Moved 3 times in 2 years incuring moving costs and stress from moving out etc.

And you didn't move to a better place? More fool you then for putting up with it and paying the landlords for the dumps you rented

wynnvegas

I paid rent for three years whilst at university. I wouldn't say I was bitter about it or begrudged it to the landlord as there was no option of buying a house for us at that time. Given the choice (all all things being equal), I can't understand why someone would rather rent than buy - obviously the continuing fall of house prices starts to build some sense into the renting argument. I'm pleased we bought and now own our house - throwing money into someone else's coffers every month ad infinitum would now upset me no end

Dan:_4

doire wrote: »

Where did you get 10 years from?

There are a whole bunch of losers over on HPC.co.uk who have been waiting since 2000/2001 for a cheaper house.

sparrer

For many years I owned residential homes, property in the Greek Islands and a 3 bed house which I rented out. Circumstances (far too involved to go into here) now dictate that I live in a HA property. I wasn't just bitter, I was devestated, depressed, angry with the 'system'. What I've discovered is a real eye-opener, there are agencies which deal with house exchanges so the awful, damp, run-down bungalow I was given has been swapped for a very nice 3-bed semi in a village location of my choice. My neighbours are amazing (no chavs here), one side has teenage girls who like their music when parents are out, but truth be known I quite like their taste in music . The other side has become a super friend, we're not on each others doorsteps but there if either of us needs something.

I think back to my property owning days. The headaches and expenditure of repairs, general upkeep, finding a reputable tradesman, avoiding cowboys and so on. Having to pay to redecorate, fix fences, prune tress...the list goes on.

Today I have a house I chose, am able to do what I want in it, if there's a problem I pick up the phone and it's fixed at no cost to me by reputable contractors.

Taking into acount what a home owner has to pay in upkeep alone, is the renter really so badly off? For sure I'm too old to get a mortgate now but this year I've had two holidays, next year I've got three including a dream trip to India. Putting all into perspective I'd rather have what I have today than what I had then.

Some will say' what about the children?' I say, what about them? Rather than wait for me to pop off so they can claim an inheritance, they were given the tools and training to get on in life, which they have. I'm proud of what they've achieved, proud that they encourage me to spend on myself.

So to answer the thread titile, no, renting does not make me bitter.

Cleaver

Sibley wrote: »

I cannot really understand why some people are bitter about renting.

True, you could look at it that you are paying off somebodies mortgage and making them rich.

I personally don't feel like that at all. I'm lucky to see the story from both sides of the fence. I own a house and rent one of somebody else. I don't feel at all bitter and twisted when it's rent day.

Fair play to them. They had the brains and vision to buy the house and deserve a return.

I don't consider my landlord to be a scumbag or any of the other bad names used on here to describe the person providing a roof over tenants heads.

I think a lot of rents will have to rise soon. This will probably make the bitterness even worse.

I wish it would stop.

I swear that a good psychologist could have a field day with some of the psychology behind a lot of the threads and posts that go on here. You could produce at least one decent essay on this post alone.

skint-student-nurse

I was never bitter about renting, just accepted that i needed to put a roof over my daughters head but couldnt get a mortgage so i had to rent. My OH was bitter about it - saying that i was throwing my money away. im probably more bitter being in a flat that my OH owns as he is really strict about paint,shelves,picture hooks,etc and it is driving me mad. I am looking to rent elsewhere for various reasons and there is not a bitter thought about it

ninky_2

Sibley wrote: »

I cannot really understand why some people are bitter about renting.

True, you could look at it that you are paying off somebodies mortgage and making them rich.

I personally don't feel like that at all. I'm lucky to see the story from both sides of the fence. I own a house and rent one of somebody else. I don't feel at all bitter and twisted when it's rent day.

Fair play to them. They had the brains and vision to buy the house and deserve a return.

I don't consider my landlord to be a scumbag or any of the other bad names used on here to describe the person providing a roof over tenants heads.

I think a lot of rents will have to rise soon. This will probably make the bitterness even worse.

I wish it would stop.

yes you are fortunate to be in that position. renting through choice and renting through necessity (with little hope of having the choice to by in the future) are very different things.

i don't think people who are forced to rent are bitter. fearful is probably a better word. fear manifests itself in different ways between people. what most humans long for is some sort of security both now and for the future - even if it is just an illusion of security. security and love are two very strong human cravings. take away people's ability to achieve these and it can be very detrimental to their emotional and physical wellbeing.

good luck to you with your own situation - it is hard to know how you find yourself in it without knowing you. but please have some sympathy for those who are not so fortunate.

nembot

Wow, there's some bitter people on this thread and they aren't the renters.