What's the point of buying when it's likely cheaper to rent?

I'm in a medium cost of living area (New England, about 90 minutes from Boston). Been considering buying, but with the state of the market ...not sure it's worth it.

Affordability is not an issue (would need to borrow only about 20% of the total), but running the numbers through NY Times rent vs buy calculator:

https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2024/upshot/buy-rent-calculator.html

- suggests that I'd save about $18K/year by renting vs buying. I've been going out and looking at a bunch of rentals and for sale properties - can basically rent the same house for $3500 per month vs buying for around $700K - same neighborhood, same layout, same condition.

Assumption are that houses and rents go up at %3 per year and I stay in the same place for 7 years. It gets worse if I everything stays flat and I have to relocate in 3 years - would loose about $45K/year. It's also possible that housing goes through another inflation spiral, but with the rates staying high and the economy cooling off ...I would not bet on it.

I can fix stuff and do maintenance if I need to, but I also don't want to do it if it's cheaper to let somebody else take care of things and not have to worry about selling when I have to move.

Honestly not sure why people continue to buy, so just wanted to hear your prospective.