In a hypothertical situation of a “normal market” the return for being an owner can’t be justified or maligned entirely by crunching numbers relative to the early years of a mortgage. If there were no such thing as abnormal appreciation and depreciation you would have look at value added over many years. That is the conservative way to look at it.

In a continuously “normal” world, home ownership would not be for mobile types, but for those that want to put down roots. Those later years of “renting from the bank” and eventual”free and clear” ownership are gravy.

The return on owner occupied housing is what you gain versus being a renter over the same time frame. For better or worse the real world provides more extreme risk reward scenarios.

I have never thought that Piggingtonian’s hated RE as an asset class. People here are too smart about money to do that.