Editor - I smiled as I read “Flying the coop - to become renters!” (Oct. 20) because it describes our situation.

My husband and I feel as if we are going against mainstream attitudes and logic because we are renting. We have owned homes during the past 14 years, but three months ago we began renting a three-bedroom, three-bathroom townhouse in a more expensive area of Hudson, Wis. (near the Twin Cities). We have pets and two kids, but this townhouse is perfect for us at this time. We pay $1,200 a month.

Homes that we were considering would have cost about $2,500 per month. What surprised me is I had forgotten all the additional costs we saved, since we don’t worry about real estate taxes, saved more than half in insurance by switching from home to renter’s insurance, and we don’t pay for water, sewer or garbage.

Also, the landlord let me paint the place any color I wanted since I had a decorator help me. She paid for the paint and I paid for the labor, which was worth it since I just could not live in white walls! (Renters should talk to the landlord and get approval on a color, since throwing on a pretty, neutral paint will improve the value.)

I have a degree in real estate and finance, and I have worked in commercial real estate and as a financial analyst for 20 years. The axiom (that I always preached) that buying is better in the long run is no longer always true.

Now we are spending more time as a family, going to parks and for walks, eating dinners together and putting our feet up, like writer Susan Fornoff. (Before we commuted and worked more often.) I really had no idea renting would reduce our stress so much. We now have more money and more time.

COLLEEN HAMMER

Hudson, Wis.

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Editor - I read “Flying the Coop” and couldn’t resist the urge to scream. Congratulations to the writer and her husband; they just made the biggest financial blunder of their lives.

As a veteran financial planner, a certified estate planner, a real estate investor of more than 30 years and a real estate broker with an academic background in finance and economics, I think I am reasonably qualified to comment. The comparison of renting versus owning completely ignores two of the most important considerations:

– Risk. The writer fails to mention what she did with the proceeds from the sale. If it is in T-bills, bank CDs or some money market accounts, it may seem relatively risk free, but tangible assets (houses) do much better than financial assets (CDs and the like) in an inflationary environment.

The writer commented that “unless you’re blowing the profits on fancy cars and vacations” she will have money to buy again, but she doesn’t understand what inflation will do to that money, especially if she expects to buy another house in four or five years. If the dough is in the stock market, consider volatility, which the stock market has had plenty of lately. Real estate, even now, is notoriously stable - more so than almost any other investment.

– Rising rents. The financial press is full of stories about why rents will rise during this cycle: Demand for housing is rising because of population growth, job creation in the Bay Area remains strong, no new construction starts, fewer young people able to qualify to buy (causing them to become renters, increasing competition for rentals) and the list goes on.

The incidental arguments about the writer’s bad decision are almost endless, particularly the fact that she probably won’t ever see interest rates this low again, let alone the rate she had previously. However, I do like the quote: “Many experts believe there’s no better long-term investment than California real estate.”

DANE FABER

Sausalito

Worms thrive inside

Editor - Thanks for a great article on worm composting (”Turning scraps into soil is a fine feast for the worms,” Oct. 20). But I’m puzzled by the recommendation to keep worm bins out of laundry rooms. I’ve been vermicomposting for about 10 years and have kept my worm bins in my laundry room all that time.

I consider this an ideal environment because it’s cooler in the summer and warmer in the winter than outside. My worms have thrived. The most important factors in my experience are convenience (for me) and moderate temperatures (for my worms).

BOB BRANSTROM

Alameda County master composter, Oakland

Fabric resource

Editor - We at Norman S. Bernie Co. in San Mateo saw the “Around the House,” item (Oct. 20) about fabric store closures.

More important for us, however, was your failure to mention us as one of the fabric stores still very much available to Bay Area shoppers. We have the largest, and we believe the finest, decorative fabric inventory in Northern California, at prices as good as or better than any other retailer, even when they offer discounts during sales.

We have been in business for 50 years, at 1135 N. Amphlett Blvd., San Mateo.

CLIFF BERNIE

San Mateo

Pink-ribbon products

Editor - I appreciated Susan Fornoff’s article, “Prescription for a mental health day: sale!” (Oct. 17) and especially the suggestion that shoppers should skip the pink blender and donate directly to a charity instead. That’s precisely the message of Breast Cancer Action’s Think Before You Pink campaign ( www.thinkbeforeyoupink.org). We launched it six years ago to urge pink ribbon marketers to be more accountable and transparent about the money they raise in the name of breast cancer. We suggest that consumers ask six questions ( www.thinkbeforeyoupink.org/Pages/CriticalQuestions.html) before buying any pink ribbon product and if not satisfied with the answers, or unable to get the answers (more commonly), buy something else, and donate directly to the breast cancer charity of their choice.

We seem to be on the same wavelength.

MARY DeLUCCO

communications manager, Breast Cancer Action

San Francisco

Source:

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/10/27/HOOGSUMDP.DTL&hw=real+estate&sn=005&sc=686