The other factors that impact my decision are whether or not to do an interest only loan and my tax bracket. I’m used to having over $40k of mortgage interest to deduct so my rent feels higher than a mortgage payment. My number crunching on the rent v. buy calculators puts me in better position with the $700k mortage as long as I don’t have to resell in the near future at a loss.
With lots of buyers waiting for Spring, it’s hard to see the houses I’m looking at being priced significantly lower in a few months, but who knows for sure.