<prompt> Human: I used the buying versus renting calculator, and I did some reading on the two. In the case where rent and mortgage are within a few hundred dollars of each other, how can renting possibly be a better option if you do not own your property? 2K burned versus 2K put into something that you can keep and potentially rent or sell later. I understand the benefits such as no maintenance and the freedom and flexibility is nice, but in the longish run, you will be able to recover tens or hundreds of thousands of dollars that you wont ever see again if you rent. Am I missing something obvious? :25 years old, college educated, no loans.  <response>: Renting is not burning money. Its paying for a place to live. Theres no guarantee you can extract your very illiquid equity out of your home. Whether renting or buying is the right decision depends on many factors, not all of which are financial 