In a previous article, we discussed some of the benefits of renting a house compared to buying it. We presented the argument as to why renting is better than buying while filling in the gaps which are counterpoints as to why buying might be better. While most of the arguments made can apply to people of all ages, in particular points are made from a millennials’ perspective. The reasoning behind this is that the millennial generation is changing the narrative baby boomers took as gospel which was that buying a house is the American dream which gives you a ticket to financial freedom.

Working From Home Versus At An Office

One of the most important benefits of renting is the ability to quickly leave at the end of the month. Obviously, some details are different for each renter. For example, some people sign a 1 or 2 year lease. In that case, you can sublet an apartment when you’re gone. The point is that if you need to move somewhere for a new job, you can leave much easier if you rent than if you own a house. It can take months to sell a house and it can take months to buy a house which are both stressful processes. Finally, closing costs are expensive.

There are a couple of aspects to review with this benefit because you need to know if it’s useful enough to justify renting over buying. One relevant trend is that more people are working from home through the power of the internet. As we detailed in another article, The Future Is Freelance, Not 401k’s. As you can see from the chart below, the number of workers who exclusively telecommute is up 115% from 2005 to 2015 while the number of non-telecommuters is up 12%.

Working From Home Is A Mega Trend

This means the majority of new jobs created in that 10 year period were telecommuters. In 2015, there were almost 4 million workers who worked from home at least half the time. That’s about 3% of the workforce. If you are working from home, then it doesn’t matter if you have the flexibility of renting which allows you to move out easily. You can work from wherever you want when you telecommute, meaning you can live wherever you want.