benefits of homeownership

What are the Benefits of Homeownership?

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Homeownership has always been associated with the idea of the Canadian Dream. For a lot of individuals, owning a home can represent stability, financial success, and the opportunity to be a part of a community. There are many benefits associated with homeownership that range from social to financial, and these benefits have led to a steady rise of homeowners.

Benefits of Homeownership

Building Equity

Equity is the amount of value that you have in a given asset. As you continue to pay off your mortgage every month, you will be building equity in your home. This will differ from paying rent because you will be contributing to a physical asset rather than making monthly payments to your landlord. This is why purchasing a home is thought to be a financially savvy move.

Long-term Savings

By building up the equity in your home, you will also be setting aside money that you can put towards your future. This is because there are many ways to tap into your equity down the line. Studies show that homeownership rates peak at or near retirement age, suggesting that home equity contributes to retirement savings for many individuals. Therefore, when you buy a home, you are supporting your own financial stability.

Also Read: Common Things to Look Out for Before Buying Your Dream Home

Building Wealth

As time goes on, your property increases in value and so does your equity. This allows you to sell your home for a profit. You can use this extra money to reinvest in a new house, as well as an investment property. Plus, you can use your home to build wealth immediately, by using it as a rental property or by house hacking.

Keep Control Over Your Expenses

When you own your own home, you can be certain of the monthly payment that you need to make while living there. On the other hand, when you are renting a home you are faced with uncertainty since the landlord can decide to change it. Unless you change your mortgage terms, your monthly payment will stay the same throughout your home’s mortgage.

Financial Education

Not many people know that the financial knowledge that comes with owning a home will be passed down through generations. By demonstrating the financial skills needed to handle mortgage payments, parents are able to better prepare their children to make important financial decisions.

Health Benefits

Studies show that homeowners have higher self-rated health when compared to those who don’t own a home. Studies also showed homeowners have higher perceived control over their lives, and higher self-esteem and happiness ratings when compared to renters.

Also Read: Mistakes to Avoid When Selling a Home

Lower Crime Rates

Homeowners typically have more incentive to deter neighbourhood crime compared to renters because of their community and ties to a certain area. Areas with higher percentages of homeowners are therefore more likely to have voluntary crime prevention programs in place and lower rates of property crime than markets with high rental properties in the area.

Property Improvements

One big benefit of homeownership is that it offers individuals the ability to customize them. Homeowners can complete renovations to make their own home look exactly how they want it to, which can also lead to boosting the home’s value on top of that. As a whole, home-owned housing is usually more well-maintained than rental properties are. This also gives homeownership another benefit.

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Radium Real Estate

Renter to Landlord: How and why to ask for a rent moratorium or reduction

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If you lose a job, even temporarily, it might mean you need to ask your landlord for some rent relief. The COVID-19 pandemic has definitely negatively impacted the economy and created a lot of uncertainty when it comes to business, and to life in general. It’s important that you understand your options when it comes to rent relief.

Speak with your landlord

The best opportunity to secure your rent relief is to negotiate with your landlord. If you are financially impacted by COVID-19 and are unable to pay rent, speak with your landlord and explain your situation. There are many situations where landlords have allowed rent reductions and rent deferrals because of the coronavirus outbreak.

If your landlord does not agree to provide you with rent relief, then you can try negotiating the transfer of your last month’s rent to your current month’s rent. This is a good time to highlight any agreed terms like deferrals in writing. These contracts will help protect you as a tenant from sudden evictions and will assure the landlord that rent deferred will be paid later on in instalments.

Given the precarious economic situation that the country is in currently, rent deferral can give some individuals breathing room to those impacted by COVID-19. But it is also true that landlords might also be facing financial difficulties themselves. Landlords who have rented out their mortgaged condos might be able to get mortgage referrals but they would still need to pay maintenance fees. While you might seek out rent deferral, keep in mind that your landlord could be in the same situation as you.

When it comes to the financial government, they have not announced any measures to specifically address rent-related issues. They did implement CERB, but since this relief will take time to get to Canadians, the attention has been focused on provincial governments since rent regulation falls under its jurisdiction.

In British Columbia, there is an eviction freeze until further notice and a postponing of eviction orders which are already in place. However, there is no rent relief as tenants are still obligated
to pay their rent. The British Columbia government website encourages renters and landlords to work things out on their own.

If you’re having trouble with negotiating, then here are some more ideas for leverage in your favour:

– You have always paid your rent on time. If you have a good track record of paying your rent, then your landlord will most likely be more willing to hear you out.
– The rental property is in good condition. Keeping the property maintained will make all the difference, so you can mention this.
– You have not had any complaints from your neighbours. Being a good neighbour goes a long way, and if your property manager has not had to deal with any bad situations in the past, they will want you to stay on the property.
– Empty apartments still cost the property owner. When the apartment is vacant, then the property owner will lose money regardless. Remind them of this and how much time it also takes to find a new tenant.

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