It's really not true AT ALL. Take the top 5 largest cities...actually I'll give you a handful of places that comparable properties are actually much cheaper than renting AND there is inventory on the market.
1.cincy
pittsburgh, pa
houston, tx
milwaukee, wi
philadelphia, pa
syracuse, ny
davenport, ia
buffalo, ny
I can't keep listing...honestly all you need to do is look at cities where boomers fled upon retirement or cities where there isn't some insane healthcare/tech boom and the mortgages are much cheaper. The rents need to come down and then people will stop freaking about NEEDING to buy a house. Prior to the pandemic I lived outside a top 5 city in the country. my rent in a decent neighborhood was half the price of what a less desirable neighborhood with not a lot of space would have gotten me. That was 8 years ago. I came very close to buying then. My rent was 700 a month and my cheapest mortgage with a proper down payment was gonna be around 1200. The greed and "luxury" apartment crap needs to stop. I venture to guess that most people would choose an 800 1 bedroom apartment again in lieu of a pool, fitness studio, trash pick up, in unit laundry, pet park and tot lot...imho they can keep all that crap...make sure I have ample parking and just offer me a suitable apartment for a much cheaper price.