My current rent: $1600 (no utilities included).
Tenant insurance: $300 (per year!).
Tenant total: $1625 per month.

Mortgage calculation: $1863 per month for a $300,000 mortgage with a 10% down payment.
Property tax: ~$300 per month.
House insurance: ~$150 per month.
Mortgage total: $2313 per month.

And that is not even including the costs of repairs on the house. In my city a $300,000 house will be in need of some major repairs.

I'd say I'm doing pretty good. I am saving that extra $700 per month myself and am in a lot better of a position than if I was paying that mortgage.

Really?

As a homeowner, I've had to replace a roof, an A/C, furnace, driveway, shed, washer/dryer/oven/fridge, fencing, removed trees, and had indoor renovations done... Tens and tens of thousands.

That doesn't include any of the time and expense to maintain the property.

Unless renters have to cover expenses like that, I can't possibly see renting as more expensive.

I have kids who rent their own place, and while the rent is expensive, they never have these kinds of crazy expenses to deal with.

But I really don't want to get into an affordability pissing contest. Everything is expensive and unaffordable for the majority of the population.

Historically, that is not always true and very market dependent.