Homeowners seem to view renting in a better light

By MarketWatch
Last Update: 2:30 PM ET Jun 8, 2007

Homeowners seem to view renting in a better light than they have in the past, according to a recent survey commissioned by the National Apartment Association.

Sixty-five percent of those surveyed said that given the current state of the real estate market there are advantages to renting as opposed to owning. Twenty-five percent said that having no susceptibility to foreclosure was a reason to rent, 23% said not having to worry about fluctuating interest rates was a perk and 23% also said not being impacted by an unpredictable real estate resale market was a benefit of renting.

"This survey reflects a notable contrast to what we traditionally see," Douglas Culkin, president of the National Apartment Association, said in a news release.

"In the past, people ... have generally seen renting an apartment as a stepping stone to homeownership. That phenomenon has by no means disappeared, but, across the nation, we're seeing more and more consumers opting to rent instead of own."

Interestingly, 54% of homeowners said that the inability to build equity while renting was a concern about apartment living, while 62% said the lack of privacy was a concern.

Certainly, playing it safe seems to be a theme these days, from lenders tightening standards to more borrowers opting for fixed-rate over adjustable-rate loans. Read more about those trends in this week's real estate pages, and also read about a consumer advocacy group's analysis on what consumers really know about the real estate industry. (Hint: It isn't much.)
As in many issues regarding real estate, the attitudes about renting are cyclical, Culkin said.

But this time around, some homeowners are "born-again renters" as they lose or are at risk of losing their homes to foreclosure, he pointed out. And qualifying as creditworthy renters after a history of delinquencies is a challenge all its own.

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