A mortgage doesn’t make money, but it (can) enable spending less money. If you buy a place such that interest, maintenance, insurance, taxes and the opportunity cost of not being able to easily relocate are less than rent, then you have saved the difference.

It’s also a way to force saving, which is psychologically useful (and thus valuable).

I bought a house when I did because the interest on a mortgage was lower than any reasonable prediction fir inflation, which seemed a lot like free money; but at the time it felt a lot more like a dirty hack taking advantage of terrible government policy than any idealistic system where credit is used to bootstrap productive capitalization.

I do. Housing prices are constantly rising, when you take a loan you are buying an asset which (with some luck) may appreciate in value more than mortgage interest rates. That's why in some countries it's worth taking a loan as soon as possible without saving for too long.

Sure, without mortgage you may not be able to afford a house at all but it does not change the fact that mortgage is a "good" loan (i.e. you benefit from taking it)

You need to compare money paid for mortgage minus price of house against money paid for rent (when you're left with no assets after all the years of paying it).

Yes, though I’d add that a house is generally viewed as an investment, unlike something like a car, which typically depreciates in value.

- They’re giving you a line of credit, money you don’t have, to buy a house.

- Why else would mortgage loans ave percentage rates if not to make money off lending you money?

Shelter (and, for many, transportation) are a need for maintaining their ability to make money. As such there is some minimum amount that must be spent on these, and loans costing up to that amount can be seen as ways of making money. Most people who make these purchases do buy even more than strictly necessary, and the extra spent above the strictly necessary line should be seen as luxury expenses.

General advice for homes leads to buying a home that does follow the logic, given historic movement of home prices and rental prices. It rarely is put in those terms, but works. For vehicles, the financial recommendation generally is to buy less car as it is a depreciating asset. If you have cash for a luxury expense, then it is no different from any other large luxury purchase, but if you have to finance, go as cheap as possible (but making sure to account for the repair costs, fuel usage, and such, not just the initial cost and loan payments).

Often, a mortgage is either used to make money (from rising house prices) or save money (when the mortgage is cheaper than rent).