[SanFranManDan]

Housing prices change. Rent prices change. Here in SoCal I was going to buy a place but the pandemic hit so we decided to rent.

Our rent payment is about half what we would pay if we bought. Just look at the last two places I rented: Rent1: $2500/mo Condo next door: $850k. That’s 4K mortgage and 1k HoA.

Rent2: $4100 Equivalent mortgage: $10k/mo

Doesn’t make sense to buy unless you are speculating on housing prices.

[pureliquidhw]

Housing prices don't change (much) after you buy. Rent is at the mercy of your landlord and the market. Here in metro Milwaukee rents are up 30% since I bought a house, but my mortgage/taxes/insurance is up 1% (I pay $18/mo more now in taxes).

My home value has skyrocketed as well, but so has every other home. However, the growth cancels out, I get my home's growth as a sort of discount were I to sell and buy another home. It's called the housing ladder and is key to preserving wealth as your housing needs change and the market gets more expensive.

Your example works in shorter time frames, buying vs renting in a given year or 3. But over the long haul I've only regretted thinking like that in my 20s and not just snatching up a home and land.

It's easier to make a person who will need a house than it is to build a house, and it's extremely difficult to make more land to put a house on.

Edit: grammar/clarity