> I bought this house new, and didn't live there very long

End of story. That's the entire conversation right there.

Note how much money he made on the house he lived in for a decent amount of time... (~330k, minus minor investments on repairs)

Renting is better than buying if you're not going to live in the house for any real duration (real meaning 5+ years).

Otherwise... at least in the US... the financials around 30 year mortgages and a target inflation rate mean buying is going to work in your favor.

Will this blow up at some point? Meh, maybe? But for now, owning is FAR better assuming you actually hold onto the property. The longer you hold, the better it gets.