Buying a Rental Property, pt.4

This story just gets better and better. One reason, maybe the main reason, that my partner and I haven't purchased a home is that the amount of interest that one pays over the life of a 30 year loan sticks in our combined craw. I am reminded of this as I look over the loan lock-in documents for our recent rental property purchase. For a loan of 103K at 6.875% we will be paying $143,131.82 in interest. Since it is a rental property and a tax deduction and the renter will be paying 100% of the mortgage, we can swallow this info fairly easy. But think about it if it is a home purchase. Yes, we get to write the interest off but we still have to pay the mortgage out of our pocket. And since home prices in our area, the beach in SoCal, are hovering at $550,000 to $780,000, the resulting interest we would pay for just the lower amount would be close to $700,000. Imagine the retirement fund we could have with $700,000 invested in an index fund over 30 years. Oh yeah, I should mention that our current rent for a large 2 bedroom, 2 bath, with office, and clubhouse and swimming pool is $1600 a month.