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Comment by jwells89 | Hacker News Reader

Stability is one of the reasons why I bought a few years ago (albeit, not in the SF Bay Area). That ever-looming possibility of needing to move again come lease renewal time, whether that be due to rent hikes or the landlord deciding to do something else with the property wore on my nerves.

Of course home ownership isn’t all roses either, but I can at least rely on and plan around my mortgage payment not changing and not having to move unless I decide to do so independently.

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>That ever-looming possibility of needing to move again come lease renewal time, whether that be due to rent hikes or the landlord deciding to do something else with the property wore on my nerves.

That sounds dreadful and that's why there should be laws against landlords kicking out long time tenants at their whim. Your home should be a safe space and having that sword of Damocles constantly looming above your head must feel awful especially in lower income households.

It’s not great, but what makes it that much worse is the hunt for the next apartment that one needs to start a good deal before lease renewal just in case. Just having a single small cat cuts your options in half, and then of course price and whatever other quality of life things you might be looking for (e.g. adequate windows/natural light/building facing) cut that down further. Apartment hunting is anxiety-stoking.

Let's not go too far either. IF that happens, you can live in a too expensive, or not optimal location, or otherwise imperfect place for a few months or one year while you hunt for better.

For me that scenario is all the more stressful since that means there’s going to be at least two moves upcoming instead of just a potential single move.

It's a "might have to" - not very likely - in exchange for going house hunting every year just before lease renewal. That's a lot of work every year. But sure, it's a choice.

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