<prompt> Human: I understand why meeting any employer match is a higher priority, but why is putting extra money into IRAs, 401Ks, 403Bs a higher priority than buying a home? I feel like buying a home is, in a way, the same as saving for retirement since youll start accruing equity sooner, ending future debt sooner, and putting it into a limited commodity which should gain value in the long run.  <response>: There are two main reasons:1. Your home, as an investment is riskier than a diversified portfolio of index funds. Property may be less volatile it goes up and down more slowly than the market, but, as Warren Buffet said last week in his annual report, There is a difference between volatility and risk. A single property in a single location is far more risky as an investment than index funds representing thousands of positions across the broad global market. Then when you add in that homes are usually leveraged up with mortgages to 80 leverage or higher, the risks are magnified even more. Although, if you buy well in a rising market, the returns are leveraged up as well.2. The difference in financial returns between owning and renting a home is not nearly as great as most people think. Usually, you need to own a home for more than 5 years to have a better financial outcome than renting.So, the markets are less risky than home ownership. Markets give higher average returns than home ownership although not necessarily if the home is leveraged up in a rising market, but then the risks are amplified as well. The alternative of renting is not much worse than ownership. Both home ownership and retirement funds have various tax advantages. In general, investing in retirement funds is a better bet than home ownership. So, not surprisingly, this sub reddit prioritizes tax advantaged retirement accounts over buying a home. 