Buying vs renting in Bristol: Property expert explains which is best for you in the long term

It’s no secret that homes in Bristol are very expensive.

But the question remains: is it better to buy a home or rent in the long-term?

We talked with Purplebricks Local Property Expert, Jake Gready, who explained why house prices are so high and whether it’s better to rent or buy.

Why are house prices so high in Bristol?

There are multiple factors leading to the high home prices in Bristol.

Jake Gready explained: “The shortage of housing stock coupled with the high demand for property has pushed the house prices up in recent years.

“But the biggest contributing factor has been the low interest rates over the years since the financial crash meaning that people were more able to afford to buy because borrowing money was cheap.

“This however is now certainly no longer the case but there is some hope on the horizon and the recent drop in interest rates has certainly given us a lot to look forward to over the next few months with restored confidence and a flood of buyers to the market.”

Other factors for the high prices include the quality of living, economic opportunities and the increase in remote working.

Jake Gready added: “The increase in remote and flexible working opportunities allows people to work from anywhere, meaning more people are moving back to their home or university cities or moving from more expensive cities like London.

“There are also many other factors which make Bristol a top choice for many buyers including high employment levels, a fast growing local economy, great transport links, global employers and amazing shopping and lifestyle.”

What are the benefits of buying a house in Bristol?

Buying a house offers security and “freedom to choose how to decorate your home and make structural changes and modifications to increase the value.”

It’s a future investment and, for most of us, “the most money we will ever make in our lives is from the rising value in our homes.”

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What are the benefits of renting in Bristol?

Renting offers flexibility to move where you want, when you want.

It can enable you to live in the most desirable and sought after areas which are out of reach to most buyers.

Budgeting is easier with renting and maintenance is not your responsibility so if something breaks or goes wrong, you can contact the landlord to sort it.

Is it better to buy or rent a house in Bristol?

Overall, whilst buying requires a higher upfront cost, renting is more expensive in the long term.

Jake Gready commented: “A good rule of thumb is that buying a property becomes better value after around 10 years, compared to renting an identical property.

“With the prospect of prices rising further in the future, my choice would always be to buy a property as opposed to renting.”