If you sell a house with $300K of equity(average US homeowner equity) you can spend half of that however you would like and still rent a house for 2k a month(avg home rental price) for 75 months just from the equity. Not the best financial decision,just a simple straight forward math example and yes the numbers are different in San Jose CA vs Pigsknuckle MS.
Currently, by straight up math calculations, in some locations the prudent decision is to rent.
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/whats-the-average-home-equity-amount-right-now/
The average homeowner currently has about $313,000 worth of equity in their home, according to the March 2025 Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) Mortgage Monitor Report.