Lease vs. Buy

The housing market has caused a damper on the homebuyers as well as the homeowners. The share of Americans who own their home dropped along with the economy (Ezzell, 2001). According to the National Association of Realtors, many homeowners have stated that over a period of several years it still makes more sense to own a home. Others who rent, say they are least likely to purchase a home further along in the future. As for now, Americans are renting homes versus apartments for the expectations of and convenience of one day owning a home of their own.

The question for a business to buy or lease is an option. When a company reviews its assets, the liabilities must be considered also. When thinking of starting a new business, office space, size of the building and how the building lay-out is set has to be taken into consideration. Next come the financing for the building and business along with taxes and liability. The thought of a lease would require payments but would also require tax liability insurance. A lease is a legal document serving as a contractual arrangement calling for the lessee to pay the lessor for use of an asset.

Generally a lease may be written or oral, but a lease for certain types or property must be in writing and signed by both parties. Some leases may need to be recorded in the registry of deeds. Such leases usually concern real property that will be leased for a period of more than three years. As any tenant knows, a lease term does not begin until a leas contract is signed and both parties exchange copies. The lease must be given directly to the lessee or a third party acting on their behalf. In all stats, leases dealing with commercial goods are strictly regulated by statutes. Most states have Uniform Commercial Codes. Also commercial leases must contain certain warranties (Huddleson,2003).