Why renters get a lot more sleep than homeowners
According to a report this month from Apartment List, renters get 84 more hours of sleep a year than homeowners because of very different "to do" lists.
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Apparently steadily climbing rents and struggling to save for a down payment aren't costing renters much rest. According to a report this month from Apartment List, renters get 84 more hours of sleep a year than homeowners.
It's all about the "to do" list.
Apartment List's researchers quantified typical days for owners and renters and found that renters spent an average of 23 fewer minutes daily on activities like yard work, housework and other maintenance. For homeowners, that comes out to the equivalent of 3½ extra 40-hour work weeks of home-related chores. The report also discovered that renters spend about 12 minutes more a day on leisure than their counterparts with mortgages.
Not surprisingly, considering that renters (at least in Philadelphia) tend to be younger, the study also found they are more likely to be socializing outside of the home, shopping, playing sports, or going out for entertainment purposes. Homeowners, conversely, tend to spend time on housekeeping and childcare.
(No word on how much time condo owners save by outsourcing much of their property maintenance or whether HOA fees make condos a worthwhile investment.)
Here are some specifics on renters' time savings, often gained by having landlords to do the heavy lifting:
Lawn and yard care — 56 minutes per week.
Maintenance and repairs — 32 minutes per week.
Housework — 23 minutes per week. Rental units tend to be smaller and faster to clean.
Food Prep — 21 minutes per week. ("It's unclear here if renters are more likely to eat out, if they're preparing simpler meals, or if they just have better knife skills," the report says.)