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  3. The following paragraphs are given in a wrong order. For Questions 41-45, you are required to reorganize these paragraphs into a

The following paragraphs are given in a wrong order. For Questions 41-45, you are required to reorganize these paragraphs into a

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问题 The following paragraphs are given in a wrong order. For Questions 41-45, you are required to reorganize these paragraphs into a coherent article by choosing from the list A-G. Some of the paragraphs have been placed for you. (10 points)

A. "It is always better to buy a house; paying rent is like pouring money down the drain." For years, such advice has encouraged people to borrow heavily to get on the property ladder as soon as possible. But is it still sound advice? House prices are currently at record levels in relation to rents in many parts of the world and it now often makes more financial sense—especially for first-time buyers—to rent instead.
B. "If I don’t buy now, I’ll never get on the property ladder" is a common cry from first-time buyers. If house prices continue to outpace wages, that is true. But it now looks unlikely. When prices get out of line with what first-timers can afford, as they are today, they always eventually fall in real terms. The myth that buying is always better than renting grew out of the high inflation era of the 1970s and 1950s. First-time buyers then always ended up better off than renters, because inflation eroded the real value of mortgages even while it pushed up rents. Mortgage-interest tax relief was also worth more when inflation, and hence nominal interest rates, was high. With inflation now tamed, home ownership is far less attractive.
C. Homebuyers tend to underestimate their costs. Once maintenance costs, insurance and property taxes are added to mortgage payments, total annual outgoings now easily exceed the cost of renting an equivalent property, even after taking account of tax breaks. Ah, but capital gains will more than make up for that, it is popularly argued. Over the past seven years, average house prices in America have risen by 65%, those in Britain, Spain, Australia and Ireland have more than doubled. But it is unrealistic to expect such gains to continue. Making the (optimistic) assumption that house prices instead rise in line with inflation, and including buying and selling costs, then over a period of seven years,—the average time American owners stay in one house—our calculations show that you would generally be better off renting.
D. Be warned, if you make such a bold claim at a dinner party, you will immediately be set upon. Paying rent is throwing money away, it will be argued. Much better to spend the money on a mortgage, and by so doing build up equity. The snag is that the typical first-time buyer keeps a house for less than five years, and during that time most mortgage payments go on interest, not on repaying the loan. And if prices fall, it could wipe out your equity.
E. In any case, a renter can accumulate wealth by putting the money saved each year from the lower cost of renting into shares. These have, historically, yielded a higher return than housing. Putting all your money into a house also breaks the basic rule of prudent investing: diversify. And yes, it is true that a mortgage leverages the gains on your initial deposit on a house, but it also amplifies your losses if house prices fall.
F. The divergence between rents and house prices is, of course, evidence of a housing bubble. Someday prices will fall relative to rents and wages. After they do, it will make sense to buy a home. Until they do, the smart money is on renting.
G. "I want to have a place to call home" is a popular retort. Renting provides less long-term security and you cannot paint all the walls orange if you want to. Home ownership is an excellent personal goal, but it may not always make financial sense. The pride of "owning" your own home may quickly fade if you are saddled with a mortgage that costs much more than renting. Also, renting does have some advantages. Renters find it easier to move for job or family reasons.

Order: A is the 1st paragraph and F is the last.

选项
答案B
解析 最后剩下B段。仔细琢磨一下，这道题可以从两个方面考虑。一是从B段第1句的让步口气：购房者从坚持买房到"如果我现在不购买" (If I don’t buy now)，说明购房者已将正面的话说尽，退一步从不购房的角度谈后果；二是与文章最后一段作者的结论加以联系。在F段中，作者通过比较得出结论：租金和房屋价格之间形成的差异，证明了住房供给中的泡沫。并对租金、工资和房价之间的关系作了归纳。B段把所有观点看法进行讨论后提出了作者的见解，为F段的结论做了很好的铺垫。B段的大意是："如果我现在不购买，我将永远不能登上有产者的阶梯(the property ladder)"—这是初次购房者的普遍呼声。如果房屋价格上涨继续超过 (outpace)工资的水平，这种说法固然不错。但是现在看来不可能。当房价与初次购房者的购买力之间形成不合理的关系(get out of line)时，价格终究会落到正常水平。购房终归比租房划算的荒诞说法(myth)出现在二十世纪七、八十年代的高通货膨胀时代。当时，初次购房者比租房者的结果划算 (ended up better off)，因为当时通货膨胀的因素消除了按揭购房的实际价值。但是现在随着通货膨胀的抑制(tamed)，家庭产权(home ownership)远没有那么具有吸引力了。
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