[baileybunny]

Hi everyone,

I wanted to get your opinion on the pro's & con's between owning your own home when you have a family and renting with a family.

We have an 16 month old DS. We are expecting baby#2 in September, DS will be 2 years old then.

Currently we own our own home, and DS being an out of control boy, seems to throw toys at walls, ram his toy-car into things, put dirty marks everywhere, scratch the tiles, try and smash the glass door, etc. (lol), he sounds like a wild beast. He isn't one to sit and quietly watch tv, even though he gets play time out at daycare and goes for walks etc he is very 'active' in our rumpus room.

It doesn't help that our house was newly built when we moved into it, so brand new and has neutral white walls...that makes a lot of his dents and bangs stand out. We are currently considering selling our house and moving closer to the city/family (we live in the sticks ATM), but to do this we are no longer going to be able to own our own home, but instead will need to rent.

Having 2 little kiddies running around a rental house (and 2 dogs), is this going to be a recipe for disaster...obviously it comes down to parenting and supervision to stop them from causing significant damage to a house, but how does everyone go with their little ones? I'm sure there are strategies/ways to stop them damaging things. Or do you just plan to repair/repaint the rental when you leave to rectify the damage??

Would you avoid renting at all costs with young babies/toddlers? Or is it not so bad and with a bit of effort and parenting you can make it alright?

[FrogIsAFrogIsAFr...]

We rent with kids, and pets, and have never had to do any extra repairs and/ or maintenance than a home owner would.

We're renters, not Neanderthals.

[CrazySingleMum]

Yes, I rent with my son. He's so far managed to avoid destroying the place, or even writing on the walls.

In all seriousness though, a new house with white walls is a bad fit with toddlers. An older house shows much less damage

Having animals in a rental property is much more problematic, especially if you want them indoors.

[junebuggy11]

We rent. It's no drama.

[BadCat]

I can't imagine giving up owning for renting.

The convenience of living more centrally may well be offset by uncertainty. I know several families right now who are having to move out of rental homes and are having difficulties finding somewhere else in their area.

Renting can be very difficult.

[New Horizons]

My house just sold (well, papers are signed but in cooling off period) and I had concerns too. Ideally I want a house with tiles or polished floorboards. This is because we have mats and throw rugs for the floor that are machine washable, much easier than carpet with a SN kid and all the bodily excretions that come with that. Also, I have a dog who free-ranges in and out and an inside cat.

[LittleMissPink]

We rent, the kids made a couple of accidental dings in the walls at our last place. I spackled, and found the closest paint in colour I could find and patched it up, then apologised to the landlord. All was good.

Landlords get that kids have accidents, or even adults (and sometimes they are not accidents at all), but as long as you leave the place as you found it, then most landlords are fairly reasonable. If you stain the carpet, have it cleaned or pay to replace. Damage a wall...fix it. Rip up the lawn....plant a new one before you leave. Common sense really.

[bebe12]

only problem with renting can be that just when you are happy and settled the landlord sells.

Also need to factor in rental increases.

being near family might help in other ways ie you getting out a bit more as they can baby sit

Either way you will make it work.

[RobotFerretOfDoo...]

only problem with renting can be that just when you are happy and settled the landlord sells.

Exactly.

We moved from a unit we owned a couple of months before DS was born, to live in a house that we rented. That house was put under the market when I was heavily pregnant with DD, and we ended up having to househunt with a 2 year old and newborn. It was a nightmare.

We moved to another rental and, 3 years later, have recently told that it is also being put on the market, a week after DS started school for the first time. Now we have to find a new home in a tight market, and we have to try and find one that means we don't have to pull him out of this school, or DD out of her daycare centre.

So, two sales in 5 years. Stressful at the best of times, extremely stressful when you have kids to factor in.

We are trying to find a place to buy this time. There is no way I'm prepared to go through this upheaval again.

[Jane Jetson]

We rent with kids, and pets, and have never had to do any extra repairs and/ or maintenance than a home owner would.

We're renters, not Neanderthals.

It did seem harder for us to get a rental with a kid, though, and I've certainly read enough to suspect that some landlords and real estate agents do assume renters with kids are more likely to trash the place. That's about other people's perceptions though, not about how clean or careful we or other renters were or are.

That said, 5 years at our last place with two little children (budding artists as well) and no dings or crayon on the walls, and we got our entire bond back, so of course it's doable. That said, I'd have to be dragged kicking and screaming back to renting for reasons of stability and not having to treat the crayons like contraband.