What you call limiting is what some might call liberating. If you're paying on a car, you don't 'own' it- the bank does. Same thing w/ a mortgage, and I know a ton of people in that age demographic to whom crediting out pieces of themselves is way more unappealing than renting, leasing, rideshares etc.
For example, we lease a bunch of land because purchasing outright puts you in the hole before you even get started. I 'own' enough equipment to cover three mortgages and it depreciates in value yearly, not to mention the cash we pay out to keep it all operational. Leasing, renting, etc are strategies for making and keeping money in the short term. If you're unattached and can get by on nominal creature comforts I think it's a great strategy...but then I'm generally against mocking people for living how they see fit.