Renters living in Philadelphia are more likely to want to buy a house than renters elsewhere in the country, says apartment search site Zumper. Zumper just released the results of its second annual Renter Survey, which was conducted on over 14,000 renters living in all fifty U.S. states. Philly renters are motivated to buy a home, says Zumper, but they – like renters from all over the country – face obstacles that stand in the way of them doing so. The biggest one? Money for a down payment.
Many Philly renters want to own their own homes, but struggle with the means to do so.
Buying a house is expensive. Most loans require you to come up with a twenty percent down payment, although there are special loans that can drop that percentage to as low as 3.5. Still, there are application fees, inspection fees, and closing costs with which to contend. Buying even an inexpensive house with a low down payment can easily cost five figures. That’s not easy to come up with when, in Philadelphia, your median annual salary is $45,000.
“In regards to renting being preferred to homeownership, I think the main factor is cost overall,” Zumper Marketing Manager Crystal Chen said in an interview with Philadelphia Magazine. “Many people are not actively saving for a down payment, and whether it’s because they are living paycheck to paycheck or their priorities of spending money varies, owning a home is expensive and many people are not ready to do that yet.
Philadelphia has somewhat cheaper rents than the national median of $1,195 a month, with the median one-bedroom in the City of Brotherly Love running about $900. But when you add in utilities, groceries, other living expenses, and possibly a car payment, there isn’t exactly a lot left over. About 44 percent of the Philly renters surveyed say that they aren’t currently saving towards a down payment on a home. Of the ones that are,
17 percent said they save $1 to $99 monthly, 12 percent said they save $100 to 199 monthly, nine percent save $200-299 monthly, seven percent save $300 to 399 monthly and 11 percent save $400 or more monthly. Basically, most renters aren’t getting anywhere fast.
If you are a Philly renter who wants to buy a home, know that it may be closer within your reach than you think. If you haven’t already, sit down with your family and make a comprehensive budget that shows where all your money is going each month and how you can comfortably and intelligently start putting money away to make your dreams of home ownership a reality.
