[ska]

You aren't looking at the calculations correctly, where the rent is a "win" it's because your overall net worth is higher than if you had bought.

You might not have the house to pass to your kids, but you would have more cash than the value of the house. As to your second point, think of it this way: the tipping point on these two means you could just buy the house cash when you retire, and end up with more money in the bank also.