Second Option — Buy your first home and rent out the extra rooms to your friends so that they cover all your monthly expenses. You need to look at your reasons for buying or renting a home against your short and long-term financial goals. Your tenants are working to pay your bills for you. For example, you might choose to buy higher-quality furniture that costs more now but saves you money over the long term because it lasts forever. The Accounting Fiction The solution to this, as I mentioned before, has been explicitly accounted for in the System of National Accounts since its first version in It Depends… By Allison Karrels. All of these options are great ways to both put a roof over your head and diversify your investments into real estate.