'Houses are terrible investments, like most cars,' says this Bengaluru-based CEO

'Buying a house is mostly about owning something. The EMI is your cost of that warm-fuzzy feeling,' CapitalMind founder and CEO Deepak Shenoy shared.

As Bengaluru topped the list as the hottest residential market in the country with rents doubling within the last year, founder and CEO of CapitalMind Deepak Shenoy, who is based in the city, said houses are terrible investments. Like most cars, buying a house is more about the "warm fuzzy feeling of ownership" than actual investment, he said. The words may seem dearer in Bengaluru as soaring rents have left most tenants wondering if it is a better decision to buy a place than rent it.

"This buy vs rent will never go away, as if it's some kind of religion. No one cares. Most people want that warm fuzzy feeling of ownership, so buying is good. Like a car," Shenoy tweeted.

He added that some people confuse it with investments. "They miss the point. Houses are terrible investments, like most cars; but that is overshadowed by the warm fuzzy feeling of ownership, most of the time. This includes the ability to change the structure of your house the way you like it, to apply for passports with a 'permanent' address, to not have to deal with rentals and brokers etc," Deepak Shenoy said. "Buying a house is mostly about owning something. The EMI is your cost of that warm fuzzy feeling, and so you should just buy when you can afford it."

Explaining how the same is applicable to luxury cars, the CapitalMind boss said that one can never justify why a Mercedes (or a Porsche) is a great idea. "But they are not evaluated on boss what crap mileage it gives and boss big deal you could take uber and it would be cheaper forever. It's evaluated on Frik, I own a goddamn Mercedes, biyatch. That warm fuzzy feeling justifies any darn EMI, but only if you can afford it (sic)," he said.

Read more: For Bengaluru entrepreneurs reeling from high rent, advice from Shark Tank judge

Bengaluru is home to over 1.5 million workers including those for global firms like Google, Amazon, Goldman Sachs, and Accenture. That population was displaced during the pandemic, with staff moving to remote work or departing the city, pushing rents down. With Bengaluru’s economy and private sector stirring back to life, landlords are looking to recoup lost revenue and find themselves in a seller’s market, Bloomberg reported. The situation has left most tenants wondering if it is a better decision to buy a place than rent it.

Read more: Bengaluru landlord hikes rent 'without any warning', says tenant: ‘If you don’t like it, leave'