Buying a home 'over £100 a month cheaper than renting'

By Daniel Culpan

Buying a home in Britain is now more than £100 cheaper per month than renting, according to research by Halifax.

The average cost per month of buying a three bedroom property in the UK in December 2011 was £600 - 16% cheaper (£116) than the average monthly rent of £716 for the same type of property.

The results were revealed in Halifax's Buying vs. Renting Review, which records changes in the cost of renting and buying a three bedroom home throughout the UK. The 'average buying costs' include things such as mortgage payments, income lost to a deposit (rather than put into savings), household maintenance costs and spending on repairs and insurance - things which renters don't have to worry about as much.

The findings marked a notable turnaround from 2009, when the average cost of buying a home was 29% higher than the typical cost of renting. Last year, the associated costs of buying a property accounted for 29% of average disposable income in the UK - a fall from 47% back in 2008.

Looking regionally, buying a home in December 2011 was found to be more cost-effective than renting in 11 out of the 12 UK regions.

Image © iStockPhotos / Fabian19

Tags: mortgages, property, insurance, renting, savings, buying a house, mortgage payments

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