> Home ownership lowers income mobility by reducing the competitiveness of the labor market

Yep. But I still bought anyways, even though houses are what I consider "bad investments" if looking at them in the abstract:

* high transaction costs * illiquid * concentrated * requires maintenance ...

But the calculation was that since the local market and job market for me are amazingly hot right now, it'd transfer my variable costs into fixed costs and be a cash transaction.

Still worth it in some cases.