In another forum, the question was about how to write a rent to own contract to protect the buyer from over paying at the end of the rental period.  My response was another question.   "Why don't you want to buy now?" There are so many good mortgage products available, especially for first time buyers. Mortgages are running near all-time low rates, and home prices have begun, at least in Oregon, a steady march upward since January 2011. 

 

Down payments are reasonable - no more than 3.5% and sellers will give credits that might pay even part of that.  VA loans are no money down, as are a couple of other programs.  

 

The issue with any rent to own or lease to purchase program is both seller and buyer are gambling on what the home will be worth at the end of the lease period.   Since no one's crystal ball extends very far in to the future (mine doesn't even get me to tomorrow), it's almost a given that one party will be unhappy with the price pad at the end of the term. Either home prices will increase more than the parties believed at the beginning, in which case the seller is unhappy, or less than first believed, in which case the buyer is unhappyl

 

Then it brings in the whole question of financing.  What happens if the buyer can't get the necessary mortgage a year from now?  Or they can get a mortgage but rates have increased to the point that the buyer can't live with higher payments.

 

Rent to Own, or Lease to Buy or whatever you call it, is almost always a bad deal for someone.   Especially with today's rates, buying now is the best answer.