As a fellow military guy, I'm with you. Buying a house is one of the aspects of the American religion that MMM and the community seem to have bought hook, line and sinker. Don't get me wrong, there are people for whom home ownership is right. But there are a few caveats.
Owning HAS to be a better financial deal than renting (after accounting for expenses, taxes, etc)
You HAVE to plan to live there for at least five years
Your lifestyle HAS to demand a house rather than apartment
My boss is set to close on a house he rented out in Washington for a couple years. From what I gather, the difference in closing costs between buying and selling was like $60k. On top of that, he banked a few hundred a month in rent vs. mortgage/taxes/insurance.
Here's the problem. It took him a few months to sell the house and with a monthly mortgage of $1800... you do the math.
They say that you throw your money away when you rent rather than buy. Well, when you rent, you buy flexibility and versatility, and a peace of mind that a homeowner simply doesn't have. If you own and the AC goes bust, get ready to shell out cash; if you rent, you call the landlord/management and if they make trouble, you follow the legal process for withholding rent until they perform the fix.
I may own a house again someday. Hell, maybe I will buy one as an investment if/when the market tanks again. But for the immediate future, I will be renting and loving it.