If you don’t care that there is a high risk the property isn’t going to appreciate for some time and its affordable for you, why not.
There are plenty of reasons to own a house besides as an investment.
However, given that every indicator is that we’ve just passed the peak of a very large housing bubble, I really think the best advice is to sit tight for a year and see what happens.
Consider this, take the money you save from renting and a down payment and stick it in a savings account. A year from now you will be able to buy better property for less money, plus you’ll have the interest accrued in the interim.
