I also agree and have a similar situation like contraman..

I rent in Harveston up in Temecula. My rent is $1800 per month, but I don’t pay the HOA($130 month). At the peak, the home I rent was worth about $575-600k. Now its worth maybe 350k, the residents on the street would think higher. With 20% down, (70k) the payment on the mortgage (280k) would still be about $2480 with principle, interest, taxes (a solid 2% or more), ins, and HOA. I’m still saving about $600 per month by renting, not counting the current depreciation. Of coarse, there would be some tax savings by owning though.