<prompt> Human: Hiya personal finance. Bit of the situation. Im 26, graduated, single and not tied down to anything. My roommate is getting married in a couple months and Im trying to decide what I want to do for housing. Ive been looking into single bedroom apartments and things are expensive. Like 800-900 a month for a one bedroom. Im sort of tired of throwing money at renting, but its what Ive been doing since being an adult so Im comfortable with it. Ive been toying with the idea of purchasing a place and renting out extra rooms to some friends.Have a solid salaried job and heres a break down of some finances bellow. 50kyear salary before tax 10-15k a year in dividend income before tax 10k liquid checkingsavings 16k in a Roth IRA since the three years Ive been working 200k investment account mix stock mutual funds and bonds. No debt, No car payment Downsides... I live in California, Sacramento to be exact, housing isnt cheap here. The average price in the areas I want to live are about 300-350k for a 2-3 bedroom. So this is where Im at, I have no idea if its a worthwhile investment, no idea if its wise to buy now. Or at all. If I were to buy I would have no idea where to start. Do most people go through a real estate agent? How do you go about finding one? Aside from mortgage and housing tax, repairs and utilities what are the hidden fees of owning a place?I would greatly appreciate any advice.  <response>: Just keep in mind that houses can be a lot of work, especially if you dont have somebody else helping out. 