Why is it better to own a house than to rent one?

Equity, you can get a return on the money you put into it.
The thought of being able to say, " this is mine!"
Yes there is a down side(s) hot water heaters, roof, paint, appliances but then they're all mine

its not, my dad encouraged me to buy my house and although i bought my house in 97 its value is now 4.5 times greater the expense on maintaining and upkeep isn't worth it. I give up my weekends with the family to earn the extras for kitchens, bathroms, boilers etc. while my housing association friends just all had new ones when there was absolutely nothing wrong with what they had it was just decided the association wanted to update. My boiler broke recently and with the boiler the fact by law its got to be moved to changes in the law I have just saved enough o get it done 5 months with no boiler and 3 kids was not easy. I have told my kids do not buy a house, use the council, housing association, the services or win the lottery.

Buying vs. renting is not a one-size-fits-all question.

Singles, childless couples, and the elderly are usually better served by renting a small amount of space with two bedrooms or less. That is usually something less than a standalone house. The rent on such a place may be less than taxes and upkeep on a house, without even thinking of the mortgage.
Families with children often have a need for their own four exterior walls. Renting a house may cost 90% or more the amount of a mortgage. Though renters are spared the taxes and upkeep, it is generally not a good deal. The rent money, which is significantly more than the rent on a small apartment, goes out every month without building equity. Under some circumstances, such as temporary military residents, renting a house is still the better way to go. It can take several months to sell a house in the event of a move.
If there is a familiy with children, and the residents do not see any likelihood of moving in the coming years, then the best bet is probably homeownership. The whole gang has to have a lot of elbow room anyway, so they may as well bear up to the interest costs of a mortgage, as well as the taxes and upkeep, while building equity and (hopefully) seeing the property appreciate in value. Family life centers around the home, so it would not be such a big deal that a house takes about six hours a week of maintenance.

In the rented accommodation you are at a mercy of your landlord whereas you are the king if you own it. It is always better to have your own house and size does not matter. Your house is your image in your surroundings.

It's better to own a house than renting because you pay for something you would own in the future. You can have a good investment.

It's no necessarily better to own than to rent. It depends on your situation in life; what you can afford, where you plan to be, how long you'll live in that area, etc. Renting works fine for a lot of people. It's a fallacy to think everyone should own. Contrary to popular thinking, paying rent is NOT throwing money down the toilet. You need a place to live. Someone else needs to rent an apartment. It's a good match. You both get what you need. You may be perfectly happy in an apartment, and nobody lives anywhere for free, unless it's under a bridge.

It's not!

http://hubpages.com/_38j6ujm10h7dy/hub/The-Myth-that-Buying-a-home-is-better-than-Renting

I think the situation is different depending where you live as well as your income etc. I own my own house and wouldn't have it any other way, but if I lived in the US I might think differently.

I own a house...It took a lot of years of saving money...and even still I have expensive upkeep repairs to do...Now at the age of 61...when I look at houses in Vancouver, BC where the average house price is 1 million dollars...I'm thinking I could rent for a lot less for my remaining years--and live well off of the proceeds of the sale of my place.
You do get 'owner satisfaction from owning...and my original house has gone up in value tremendously(but that is all on paper--if I had to sell and rebuy it wouldn't really matter). Renting may be the way to go...

owning a house is too much trouble... who ever says owning a house is the better choice may have their head in the clouds :P
i used to want to own my own house until i woke up and smelled the expenses

In very simplistic terms, renting means you're paying someone else's mortgage who eventually will be able to sell the house for what YOU paid him and more.
In other words, paying rent is money down the toilet.
When you reach a certain "advanced" age, then of course rent a property and spend what you've made.

I am paying less now for a mortgage than I was to rent, and I get equity too. Win/win for me. May not be for others though, particularly the ones who fell for the "variable" mortgages.