Oh absolutely, and I bought a house for largely that reason. I also DIY most of my repairs, so according to my math, I should come out ahead vs renting, and enjoy more space and more freedom to do what I please on that property (no HOA, so very few rules on what I can do). But a lot of people end up spending more on a house vs renting because:

• they buy more house than they need
• they fill up unused space w/ stuff (RV that gets used maybe once a year, beds in unused rooms, etc)
• they hire out repairs to experts (call plumber for every clog, have a lawn service, etc)
• constantly upgrade things, and again, hire out the help to do it (often getting a HELOC or something to fund it)

My area has low property taxes, relatively low house insurance, and my dad taught me how to do a lot of basic things around the house (i.e. I repair my car in my garage, I do basic electrical work like swapping plugs and switches, have fixed my appliances a few times, etc).

There are absolutely ways to profit off owning property, but there are also a lot of ways to piss that away. That’s why I use national averages for things like this, not my own experience.