<prompt> Human: I am looking into buying a condo or townhome for the first time and need a little help understanding how the process should work.My questions are: 1. Should I buy or keep renting? Interest rates and prices are low now, right? Is it a good investment? 2. What lenders should I talk to? How do I shop around and what should they be offering and telling me? 3. How do I find a realtor and know theyre trustworthy? 4. What kind of financing is best if theres the possibility of moving in 3-5 years? A little background: 24 years old, making 45,000yr, renting a 1BR for 900mo. Generous parents have offered to gift 20,000 for a down payment. Want at 2BR place no more than 150,000 and have been pre-approved for that amount. Thinking of renting the extra room out to get a little more . Plan on living in this city Atlanta for the next 3-5 years but not sure what the future brings after that.So far I have spoken to a mortgage consultant at Wells Fargo and they have pre-qualified me but not provided any information on any other fees or what the interest rate will be. I am in contact with one realtor but nothing has happened with that yet.Thanks Reddit!EDIT: Thanks for all of the responses, heres how Ive calculated things, let me know if Im missing something: 150,000 home 130,000 loan 20,000 down payment 13.4 620 mortgage payment for 30 yr fixed 4 interest rate 80mo mortgage insurance 50mo homeowners insurance 300mo condo fee 225mo tax 1.8 220mo utilities 100mo maintenance Total Expenses: 1600mo. Split between two people 800mo Is renting still better?  <response>: No, its not a good investment. Its a place to live. If you dont plan on living there long-term, dont buy it. Tons of things can go bad with a condotownhome. Generally theyre bought by people who dont know better. You need to do a lot of diligence in researching the financial state of the association that runs the complex to make sure theyre not heavily in debt or have other problems. Then theres bad neighbors, bad HOA, internal maintenance costs, etc. which can all be unpredictable and affect your ability to sell when you need to. Keep renting until you are ready to settle down, and save yourself a ton of headache.Ive never heard anyone say Im so happy I decided to buy that condo. 