m in Israel: “Your calculations are not taking into account the down payment. Although it is true that when you rent you are “throwing away” that money, a big portion of those payments, especially in the beginning are to pay interest on your loan, which is also money thrown away”.
I stated clearly in my post: “If you have the downpayment, then it certainly makes more sense financially to buy”.
I wrote my comment based on the way the market works in the UK. Here tax is paid the same as a renter or as an owner. It is charged to the occupier. There is a tax however at the time of purchase which is either 1% or 2% depending on the value of the purchase. I would include this in purchase costs, not in the upkeep of a property. We could get a mortgage with a 25% downpayment and the repayments are invariably similar to rent charges, if not cheaper!
Yes houses are ganavim and they eat up money in repairs etc, but its like an animal. The more you feed it, the fatter it gets, the more you receive in return when you sell it on!