To Own or Not to Own

Anyone looking for some wonky fun tonight? Well we have just the thing for you.

Tonight at Hampden’s Atomic Books, business journalist and author Jane Hodges will discuss her latest book, Rent Versus Own: A Real Estate Reality Check for Navigating Booms, Busts, and Bad Advice. Published by Chronicle Books, Hodges findings are pertinent to anyone considering whether or not to take the plunge into a home owning mortgage.  By way of anecdote and statistical evidence, she negotiates the flood of variables required to determine when buying makes sense—and when it doesn’t. Her stories have appeared in The Wall Street Journal, Seattle Times, MSNBC.com, Reuters, Real Estate Forum, AOL Housing Watch, and countless other publications and news sites.

In 2010, the Census Bureau reported some pretty grim statistics regarding home ownership in Baltimore.  We were among 25 large cities (including Minneapolis and Salt Lake City) where the ratio of homeowners to renters swung to the side of renters in the latest census. According to the prior census in 2000, Baltimore’s population had a slight majority of homeowners to renters (50.3 percent to 49.7 percent, respectively). Since the national recession and housing crisis, home ownership in Baltimore has fallen to a dismal 47.7 percent, leaving citywide renting statistics at an increased figure of 52.3 percent.

With conventional wisdom saying that buying is superior to renting, these statistics are unsettling. And yet, maybe the new economy demands a rethinking of these long-held beliefs.  

In true Atomic Books fashion, the event is free and will include “adult refreshments” (booze!). It starts at 7 p.m. and more information can be found at the store’s website here. 

[This post was written by summer intern Lowen Howard.]

[Image from the Southern Illinoisian]