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Re:Home ownership is the West’s biggest economic-policy mistake by pc86 on Tuesday April 20, 2021 @07:11AM (#26873090)
> and selling a few years later

That might be part of the problem? It's extremely rare to make a profit selling a home less than 5 years after you bought it even in good-but-not-insane markets. Basically unheard of in under 3 years in not-insane markets. If the market slips you're easily looking at 7-8 years to break even. The math of a six-figure, three-decade loan just doesn't support quick flips even just to break even, and most people are way too proud to sell something for break even 5 years after they bought. Add in maintenance and it's easy to see how if you let that slip you can be on the losing end of a sale even 5-6 years later.

Re:Home ownership is the West’s biggest economic-policy mistake by jcadam on Tuesday April 20, 2021 @07:41AM (#26873279)
Just sold a house in FL I bought in 2019. Realized I made a mistake in buying it - luckily the absolutely insane housing market right now in FL allowed me to get out without losing my shirt.
Re:Home ownership is the West’s biggest economic-policy mistake by Hamuko on Tuesday April 20, 2021 @08:03AM (#26873450)
The housing market feels insane here as well. If my apartment fetches the same price per square metre as what other apartments in my area of the same age are listed for, my apartment would sell for like 30,000 € more today than what I paid for it like two years ago.
Re:Home ownership is the West’s biggest economic-policy mistake by yosito on Tuesday April 20, 2021 @07:25AM (#26873178)
Sure, you're correct. But there are many things that can force you to sell a house and take a loss.
Re:Home ownership is the West’s biggest economic-policy mistake by JansjoFromIkea on Tuesday April 20, 2021 @07:50AM (#26873340)
to what extent is this factoring in the cost of rent? If I barely broke even on a sale after 5 years without accounting for the savings of not paying 5 years rent I'd be pretty happy with that exchange tbh.
Re:Home ownership is the West’s biggest economic-policy mistake by CuriouslyC on Tuesday April 20, 2021 @09:37AM (#26874465)
Depends on if you use a realtor to sell, if you get lucky in terms of unexpected maintenance, if you do any work on it yourself, and how much rentals cost in your area. It's not hard to make a short term profit as long as you keep realtors and contractors out of the mix.