Can’t speak to the specific properties you are looking at, OP, but generally speaking in SD it is most definitely not 2x as expensive to buy as to rent, once you consider everything (including the all important mortgage interest deduction). In fact the monthly nut ratio is not far from the lowest ever, per the second graph here: http://piggington.com/shambling_towards_affordability_midyear_2015%5B/quote%5D
The OP thinks he can rent a 2 bedroom townhouse in Pacific Beach for
1700-2000? lol. Maybe a 600 sq ft apartment in a complex on Garnet. But not a townhouse.
