With interest rates at all-time lows, in some situations, it is now a lot cheaper to be an owner-occupier than a renter. And with the prospect of interest rates not rising anytime soon, it could stay that way for a few years, unless the market changes.
I thought it would be interesting to analyse the potential impact of this phenomenon. Obviously, there are some practical implications for people contemplating renting versus buying. But also, there will no doubt be broader consequences for the property market as a whole.
How much cheaper and for who?
Our analysis is summarised in the table below. Essentially, we compared the current value and rental cost of five property types and locations. The five scenarios were as follows:
1. Luxury, high-end, boutique apartment for $2.2 million;
2. Entry level 2-bedroom apartment that is considered investment-grade for $580,000;
3. Investment-grade, 2-bedroom house in a blue-chip suburb for $1.2 million;
4. A 3-bedroom family home in a desirable suburb for $2.5 million; and
5. A 3-bedroom home in an outer suburb for $660,000.
The interest cost was based on an interest rate of 2.2% p.a., which is the current 3 -year fixed rate for owner-occupier mortgages. It assumes that the owner has borrowed 100% of the purchase price plus stamp duty, which isn’t practical unless they have additional security to offer the bank. But we had to make this assumption to ensure it was a fair comparison, even though consequently it becomes more of an academic comparison than a practical one.
I’m sure you agree that it defies logic that it is less expensive to own your home than rent it. If this continued to be true, renting becomes far less attractive. As such, it is reasonable to assume that market forces will eventually conspire to reverse this i.e. make it more expensive to own. More on this later.
Comparing interest and rental is not the full picture
The above table compared the mortgage interest cost with the rental cost. However, as a homeowner, there might be additional cash flow implications associated with owning your home.
Firstly, there’s the cost of maintenance to consider. This will depend on the type and age of the of property. It’s important t
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