Run the full monthly number before deciding. Rent or mortgage is only the loud cost; the quiet costs are what wear you down. Diversity, school ratings, train access, and house size do not always line up neatly, so every family ends up choosing a trade-off. My advice is to rent or stay flexible at first if you do not fully understand the area yet. It did get easier, but not because everything became perfect. It got easier because we stopped expecting the move to solve every problem.