The main issue with owning as far as I'm concerned is the transaction costs involved in buying or selling. I never considered owning until I had the opportunity

The main issue with owning as far as I'm concerned is the transaction costs involved in buying or selling. I never considered owning until I had the opportunity to save in the ballpark of 50% or more versus renting and I thought there was a good probability I would never move again. If I moved, I'd expect it would cost at least 6% of the value of my home. Maybe more like 10%. I can't imagine buying with the expectation of moving in the forseeable future. This is what lack of flexibility means. Getting out of a lease might have a cost, but nowhere near as much. You also may not relate to markets where there is no particular trend in prices over and above inflation. My home is almost 30 years old and has not appreciated except maybe temporarily this past year. Most of the country/world is not SF or Vancouver. Finally, your penultimate sentence sounds like you may not be paying interest on a mortgage, which obviously is a significant addition to expenses. And there are a lot of little things that add up if you make a spreadsheet, when you own rather than rent. Constant maintenance too. Oh and "within 90 days" implies any time of year is as good as any other - I'm not particularly knowledgeable, but I would have assumed that you have a much better chance if you put a property on the market in the spring, so practically speaking, the window is once a year, like a 12 month lease, no?