God no. I used to think that. I was right there with people who complain about things like "I only got approved for 1200 months mortgage but I pay 1500 rent and it's frustrating); but the reality hit me hard once we bought our house. Mortage is such a small percentage of home ownership. First; is that with or without "escrow" (property taxes and homeowners insurance)?

What about PMI? Cant come up with 20% of the principle then you literally pay the mortgage company's insurance policy that protects them from you. It's usually over 100 bucks a month and that doesn't got to any principle or interest payment. It's you paying an insurance policy against you for them.

Your homeowners insurance policy will only cover you if you hit certain milestones. Like, replacing a roof. Where I live a 30 year roof has to be replaced every 15 years to maintain insurance which you have to have if you have a mortgage.

The repair and replacement costs for anything related to your home will blow your mind. Stuff you're used to calling your landlord for will come out of your pocket instead and it is INSANE.

Owning is still, after all that, worth it, but renting vs owning is not a dollar to dollar comparison. Sure; houses usually gain value. But they also cost exponentially more money to maintain. You can gain 20% in equity then replace a roof and be back in debt.