NEW YORK CITY (WABC) — In the latest installment of the “Your Money, Your Savings” series, Eyewitness News examined how buying a home or apartment compares with renting, as many renters continue to face annual rent increases.<\/p>\n
Everyone complains about their rent going up every year. How do you keep that from happening? YOU become the landlord.<\/p>\n
Eyewitness News looked at several properties and estimated monthly costs based on a 20% down payment and a 7% interest rate.<\/p>\n
On the Upper West Side, a co-op listed at about $399,000 would require an estimated monthly mortgage payment of about $2,100. Building maintenance and taxes would add about $1,000 per month, bringing the total monthly cost to about $3,100. A 20% down payment would be about $80,000.<\/p>\n
Broker Jessica Cohen of Brown Harris Stevens said potential buyers are increasingly weighing ownership against rising rental costs.<\/p>\n
“The numbers are making sense to own. Rents went up so much,” Cohen said.<\/p>\n
Here are some other examples:
A two-bedroom apartment in Inwood, Manhattan, priced at $500,000, with an estimated monthly mortgage payment of $2,700.
A one-bedroom apartment in Midwood priced at $275,000, with an estimated monthly mortgage payment of $1,465.
A three-bedroom, two-bath house on East 222nd Street in the Bronx, listed at $650,000, with an estimated monthly mortgage payment of $3,400.<\/p>\n
Taxes and homeowners association fees can add between $500 and $1,000 per month to housing costs.<\/p>\n
“You could freeze your own rent by buying a place,” Nelson Aspen said. “The next time your lease is up you could be priced out altogether and find yourself with nothing.”<\/p>\n
Aspen, who was selling his home, said he has already moved to a better property.<\/p>\n
“My advice to anyone regardless of age is consider ownership. Best investment you can make especially in NYC,” Aspen said.<\/p>\n
For some buyers, the appeal of ownership extends beyond building equity to the prospect of housing costs that do not increase every year.<\/p>\n
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