Housing has always been seen as an investment. Hence the idea of “land lords” and property owners being the wealthy, able to turn dividends from their property ownership. Mark Twain advised “buy real estate, they’re not making any more of it.” (N.b., never take investing advice from mark twain) what has changed is that real estate investing has become an anymans game rather than the elite. But the fact you can take your own capital and buy an asset (investment by definition) and that investment can be turned around and rented out to form a cash flow makes it a legitimate investment. If you think home prices are outrageous, then compare the rent rates vs the monthly mortgage rates for the same property. You should see mortgage rates are slightly higher because housing has an embedded utility as a basic necessity as well as a cash flow, but they shouldn’t be too far off. If mortgage rate >> rent, you’re in a bubble of asset valuation driven by speculation on home price appreciation - what you’re discussing - and you should stay away from buying as either rents will rise or prices will drop. If rent >> mortgage rates, you’re in a home price depression and smart money would be to buy or build houses and rent them out. Regardless, the ability to rent property you own is the fundamental driver of home price appreciation, not speculation that prices will continue to go up. In fact, given it’s a durable basic necessity that can be transferred without impairment after use (unlike food, which turns into poop) and at least retains value if not increase in value, I don’t see how it could help but be an investment.

Ultimately supply is the only way to decrease price.

Supply? Like the thousands of vacant crumbling homes in Germany's most expensive city, Hamburg, that are essentially held by investors for the appreciation of land value alone?

Look, I know the economics. I don't like them. Fundamentally. Housing shouldn't be owned, at least not at scale.

My comment was mostly to point how how asinine your "if you are persistent you can do it" point is, being that both rent and morgages are skyrocketing. My rent got raised by 14 percent (it's coupled to inflation, that used to be a better deal) and you'd need about 200k/yr (pre-tax) household income right now to even get approved for a morgage here. It's essentially impossible for a working class person, unless you're on the top few percent of (labor based) income. And those people tend to have substantial capital too. Tech salaries don't scale this far here.