Well yes, the fees are priced in. But in practice it is far from unheard for apartments to be rented for less than cost of mortgage if you were to buy today plus all fees. This can be influenced by the owner having bought a fair bit cheaper, or the owner counting on capital gains for the main income from the property, or the owner simply being unable to find a tenant that would pay more.
Ultimately the market decides the rent and landlords' cost is only one of the factors in the market price.
In Toronto and Vancouver condo markets it has been cheaper month-by-month to rent than to buy for a fair while. Which one will end up better 30 years down the line depends on a lot of future factors and is far from clear at the moment.
Incidentally, in 2011 I was offered lowered rent on my Toronto studio when I gave notice I would move out, in an attempt to get me to stay. I wanted to move out of the city so it was rational for me to refuse :D
(Sorry to see your posts downvoted, I upvoted you)
Basically if it's cheaper for a renter to live in a place than for an owner to live there, then the owner must be coming up with the difference, thereby subsidizing the renter.
That is the basic condition that makes renting more attractive: can I rent a place for lower total monthly payments than buying a similar place in the same area.
That owner who doesn't live in the rented unit has to live somewhere else, and faces living costs there, on top of subsidizing the renter.
That situation can hardly persist for long; landlords may be willing to take it on the chin for a while (e.g. to get into the rental business), but not over the long term.
The rent will have to go up eventually to close the gap, or else the landlord will kick out the tenant and move in to save money. Or even sell the place (whereby the new owners may kick out the tenant).
Ultimately the market decides the rent and landlords' cost is only one of the factors in the market price.
In Toronto and Vancouver condo markets it has been cheaper month-by-month to rent than to buy for a fair while. Which one will end up better 30 years down the line depends on a lot of future factors and is far from clear at the moment.
Incidentally, in 2011 I was offered lowered rent on my Toronto studio when I gave notice I would move out, in an attempt to get me to stay. I wanted to move out of the city so it was rational for me to refuse :D
(Sorry to see your posts downvoted, I upvoted you)