It's not like people have had a choice.
But while they are both irrationally overvalued, you can’t mine for new housing stock.
Buying vs renting is a choice
What's more, unlike long term fixed rate mortgages, rent tends to increase every year according to market conditions, so when renting you can't avoid the increase by staying where you are.
Market conditions means rents can decrease too
And unlike mortgages you can’t finance rents - it’s based on what the tenants are willing to pay