If the term "investment" is being applied it's going to be a capital gain (goes up/down in price) or a cash flow producing asset. The term should never be applied to home ownership. It deludes purchasers into thinking a house is something it's not.
Since people have to have someplace to live anyway, then they will be paying someone for living space. NOT having that expense at all is a whole lot cheaper than having it.
Not true. The loan may be paid off freeing a % of your income for other things. However, you will have property taxes, insurance, maintenance and utilities. Also, as things become outdated they will need to be upgraded in order to maintain value.
The renter is not tied down to a specific property so when the costs go up to pay for the previously mentioned items they can move to a newer property with more amenities.
Property taxes don’t approach the cost of property tax + payment.
It all depends on location and the quality of govt in the area.
All of those thing, no matter where you live, is included in the price that you pay for your dwelling. You are paying for them anyway. (Most places don't include all utilities; you have to pay that separately.)
Any rental business that does not include its costs in its product price is doomed to fail. It's a given, all those taxes, maintenance, insurance, etc. costs are in the cost of your dwelling if you rent. It's just a fact. Unless, of course, you rent from your momma, and she's giving you a deal out of the bigness of her heart.
An investment does NOT have to produce a capital gain in the sense of the market and the tax tables.
Shelter is a necessity. It must be taken care of one way or another.
The same with "investing" in a family garden. You've got to have food anyway. This way you have nothing to report to the tax tables, and you have the cost of sweat equity, but you also have a REAL product you can use to offset what would otherwise be necessary costs.