Your aunt says a lot of sensible things, but she also says many things to which I would reply, "If you don't do that yourself, you're a hypocrite to expect less wealthy people to do it."

She's clearly not living the "Look 'poor,' even though you're rich" lifestyle. If she were, some of her suggestions would be less objectionable. For instance, if she mowed her own lawn, I'd have no objection to her advising poorer people to do the same. But since she hires a lawn service--no.

We own our own home, by the grace of an inheritance, and I agree with your aunt that you should not buy a home unless you have a very stable job and are making enough money to not only pay the mortgage, but also pay for maintenance of the home itself and the yard, as well as homeowner's insurance, flood insurance, and HOA fees.

On the other hand, renting sucks because it increases every year, so you never feel like you're getting ahead. So even though you can't comfortably afford it, owning your own home is better because you're at least building equity, instead of sending your money down the black hole of the landlord's pocket. There is no easy solution.