# Make me feel like less of a tool for renting! **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [March 6, 2003, 10:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/make-me-feel-like-less-of-a-tool-for-renting/159589 "2003-03-06T22:36:57Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2003, 7:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/make-me-feel-like-less-of-a-tool-for-renting/159589/21 "2003-03-13T19:01:22Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Velma \* > \*\*PMI is insurance you pay until you have a certain amount of your mortgage paid off (I don’t know if the percentage is always the same, for us it was 20%). There are ways to get around it, but it is basically so you can prove you make your payments and are not going to default on your whole mortgage, screwing the bank. \*\* And note, I managed to have Velma say this without moving my lips or anything!😛 Seriously, she gave the right answer. But it is insurance that YOU pay for, and that any benefits go to your lender. There has been much discussion on this issue, with Congressional fact finding commitees & all. Seems like a lot of lenders seem to “forget” to tell their lendee that they can stop paying for their PMI.:eek: Basicly, it’s a rip-off.:dubious: ---
**Author:** ![anya\_marie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ebca7d/32.png) [@anya\_marie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/anya_marie)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2003, 9:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/make-me-feel-like-less-of-a-tool-for-renting/159589/22 "2003-03-14T09:16:42Z")
I never understood that whole"If you rent, you’re just throwing your money away". Shelter and a place for your stuff is worth nothing?? I could see this someone rented a box under a bridge. ---
**Author:** ![Velma](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/85e7bf/32.png) [@Velma](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velma)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2003, 3:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/make-me-feel-like-less-of-a-tool-for-renting/159589/23 "2003-03-14T15:17:06Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by DrDeth \* > \*\*And note, I managed to have Velma say this without moving my lips or anything!😛 > > \*\* I saw them move a little bit.😃 ---
**Author:** ![Leifsmama](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/a698b9/32.png) [@Leifsmama](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leifsmama)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2003, 3:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/make-me-feel-like-less-of-a-tool-for-renting/159589/24 "2003-03-14T15:46:09Z")
Wonderful thread. Thanks. My husband is one of those renting-is-throwing-your-money-away people and I just can’t convince him otherwise. He equates renting with poverty. It’s always seemed to me that owning could cause poverty to quicken. I’m printing this out and giving it to him tonight. Thank you. ---
**Author:** ![troub](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/troub/32/14802_2.png) [@troub](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/troub)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2003, 4:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/make-me-feel-like-less-of-a-tool-for-renting/159589/25 "2003-03-14T16:33:21Z")
I agree that if you move around a lot, renting is _obviously_ the better idea (remember, renting doesn’t always mean apartment. . .all kinds of dwellings are available for rent). I speak as a fairly new homeowner, and previous renter. Many in this thread speak of the virtues of having other people fix their stuff–I’m in the camp with **Zyada** where I need to have control over my environment. The whole time I rented could be described as a period of normalcy frequently punctuated by extreme frustration and anger. Coming home to find my ceiling sawed open (with drywall flakes all over the kitchen) and water stains all over the place because of leaky water pipes (also a large hole was cut in the bathroom wall that went all the way into the next apartment, which was unoccupied at the time). Reporting sewage backing up into the kitchen sink, and being ignored for almost 36 hours. Electrical outlets never working right (plug something into it and it trips the GFI outlet across the room), being reported and never fixed. Things like that, where I had no control over fixing or getting them fixed myself, frustrated me immensely while I rented (the sewage in the kitchen was especially gross–particularly when their plumber showed up and promptly proceeded to flood not only the sink, but the entire damn kitchen with raw sewage, ruining several items which they then were very reluctant to pay for). I’m so glad I’m in control now 🙂 I _like_ maintaining my yard. I can have a dog now (my last apartment had a no-dog policy when I moved in, but as soon as a friend of the owner moved into the aptmnt. next to mine I guess that was abolished since he brought his incessantly barking mutt with him, but mine was forced to live with my parents). Sorry it turned into kind of a rant. For _you_, I think it’s obvious that **renting is right for you**. But it’s not for everybody 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![singular1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ba9def/32.png) [@singular1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/singular1)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2003, 2:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/make-me-feel-like-less-of-a-tool-for-renting/159589/26 "2003-03-18T14:18:04Z")
**troub** -it sounds like you lived in some pretty horribly managed places. I think I should point out that we rent a house, not an apartment. My experience as a _house_ renter is pretty similar to that of being a homeowner, except I don’t have to make or pay for repairs or taxes. Since we have a dog and 2 cats, I think an apartment would be hard to find. For all of you who are having bad rental experiences, I encourage you to rent a house instead, if you can afford it. It is a much more pleasant experience, and the owners generally stay out of your place unless you call with a problem. YMMV, of course. ---
**Author:** ![Homebrew](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/c89c15/32.png) [@Homebrew](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Homebrew)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2003, 2:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/make-me-feel-like-less-of-a-tool-for-renting/159589/27 "2003-03-18T14:50:16Z")
[Motorhome living](http://www.flamingo-code.com/motorhome.asp) may be your answer. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/make-me-feel-like-less-of-a-tool-for-renting/159589.md?page=1)