Ali Abdaal’s “Buy vs Rent” Argument Makes Complete Sense
So should you buy a house?
Ali Abdaal is one of my favourite YouTubers.
He’s a former NHS doctor and makes “silly videos for the internet”. (His words — not mine!)
It’s a lucrative pursuit. His main channel has 2.97 million subscribers, and he has a team of 19 people. In this video, he explains how online income streams made him $4,790,000 in 2021.
In one of his latest videos — My $2.4m London Apartment Tour — he talks through the financials of owning your own place.
It’s one of the best takes on the whole “rent vs buy” argument I’ve ever seen.
Here’s a breakdown.
The context
Ali starts with an apartment tour.
All you need to know is this. He lives in a nice apartment in a nice building that’s full of amenities. A gym, spa, coworking space, entertainment room — the lot.
“If you were to buy somewhere like this, in Central London… this flat would cost £1.8 million or $2.4 million.
“I did not buy the place… I could not afford it. I wanted to live in a nice place in Central London, and a nice place in Central London is super expensive…
