Great. Except that money can't go into an investment account because you still need it for rent. Actually, around here I'd be paying about 50% more than my cur

Great. Except that money can't go into an investment account because you still need it for rent. Actually, around here I'd be paying about 50% more than my current mortgage to rent the same sort of house, so month-to-month it is a greater expense. So the only difference is you still have the down payment. And even then, for me, having that downpayment makes little difference financially over the course of 25 years. I seriously doubt it would stay in the bank over that time. I had an argument with a friend a couple of years ago along these lines; he claimed that renting was much more financially stable, but now he seems no more or less stable than myself... There is a lot of FUD around the "buy a house", "don't buy a house" argument, it's best to treat it all with a pinch of salt and make your own decision.