Most Germans don’t buy their homes, they rent

Post by Spooky23 » Mon, Oct 24, 2016, 8:27 PM UTC

heisenbit wrote: post #196

Spooky23 wrote: post #180

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Residential properties usually have short term leases. You have minimal incentive as a tenant to plant flowers, buy shrubs, etc. You have minimal inventive as a landlord to make the house look any more attractive than it needs to be. Landlords don't maintain property to the same standard as an individual homeowner, when they do, they use more efficient service models (ie. a single crew with a single set of tools) to…

"Residential properties usually have short term leases." Not true in Germany. Most leases are indefinite. As the contractual rent often increases by less than the market there is some incentive to stay put. Also keep in mind that moving in Germany is an expensive proposition as the kitchen is usually not part of the deal.

Post by Spooky23 » Mon, Oct 24, 2016, 8:28 PM UTC

hx87 wrote: post #240

Spooky23 wrote: post #180

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Residential properties usually have short term leases. You have minimal incentive as a tenant to plant flowers, buy shrubs, etc. You have minimal inventive as a landlord to make the house look any more attractive than it needs to be. Landlords don't maintain property to the same standard as an individual homeowner, when they do, they use more efficient service models (ie. a single crew with a single set of tools) to…

> Residential properties usually have short term leases. You have minimal incentive as a tenant to plant flowers, buy shrubs, etc. You have minimal inventive as a landlord to make the house look any more attractive than it needs to be. That's because homeownership is a norm for long-term residents here in the USA. If long term renting were as much (or more) of a norm, an average renter would experience the same incen…

Post by hx87 » Mon, Oct 24, 2016, 8:29 PM UTC

dasmoth wrote: post #192

ZeroGravitas wrote: post #57

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Part of that might be tax incentives for mortgages, which another commenter claims Germany doesn't have

The UK doesn't have tax incentives for mortgages any more, but they're still popular. I think the big distinction is that -- unlike nearly anything else you might buy on credit -- houses don't really depreciate. Even without the overall rising house prices, relatively few people value a 20 year old house at a meaningful premium over a similarly-sized 40 year old house. So it's comparatively easy to justify as an asse…

Post by dmux » Mon, Oct 24, 2016, 8:30 PM UTC

Normal_gaussian wrote: post #176

aianus wrote: post #146

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It gives you the liberty to move for a better job. That's enormous when you're early in your career and switching jobs results in huge pay increases. Even within the same city, it's really nice to move near your new job and not have a commute.

I don't see that this is a real problem for ownership. You can sell the house and buy another. Sure its more complex than simply giving notice and leaving but it isn't hard.

Post by matthewowen » Mon, Oct 24, 2016, 8:32 PM UTC

maxerickson wrote: post #122

tcbawo wrote: post #72

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I had heard that the mortgage deduction was designed to incentivize the population to settle down. A population that is settled is more invested in the community, less likely to cause trouble, and more likely to pay taxes. Although, in today's workforce, lack of mobility can be a liability.

Most of the benefit goes to the wealthy (at least, the portion of the population with the highest incomes; I'm not interested in arguing about whether households earning $200,000+ in high expense areas are wealthy or not). http://www.taxpolicycenter.org/model-estimates/individual-in... For someone earning $500,000 a year, a $5,000 tax break is a $5,000 tax break, it isn't going to do much of anything to their behavio…