This is a fantastic analysis, but one also needs to think about the less quantitative benefits of home ownership. Owning a home gives you equity in your communi

This is a fantastic analysis, but one also needs to think about the less quantitative benefits of home ownership. Owning a home gives you equity in your community because your economic outcome is tied to the neighborhood. In fact, home ownership rate is tightly correlated with reductions in crime rate [0]. As a renter in SF, I feel more like a tourist than a resident -- I don't care very much about the schools my kids will probably never go to or a lot of the far off political issues that will probably never affect me. I'm a young programmer and don't really have roots here. I think it would feel really different if I owned my home. Home owners, did buying change your sense of community? Disclaimer: My company Open Listings (YC W15) is trying to make it simple and more affordable to buy a home [1]. [0]: http://ecedweb.unomaha.edu/neba/journal/EBJIP2009NiDecker.pdf http://ecedweb.unomaha.edu/neba/journal/EBJIP2009NiDecker.pd... [1]: https://www.openlistings.co/ https://www.openlistings.co/