Are condos worth it as a stepping stone?

Hi,

Myself and my partner are both late twenties. Pre-tax income 170k combined, 140k in savings spread out through various RRSPs, TSFAs, and FHSAs and HISAs, majority of it in long term managed investments.

We live in Victoria, BC. We are debating buying a condo, but not sure much how much sense it makes. We are currently paying $2200/month in rent all in. We are looking at 2bd 2ba condos in 5-600k range which would put all in monthly payments are $3600. This seems crazy expensive for a condo but is the going rate in this city. Eventually we would like to buy a stand alone home but can’t afford it yet.

From a pure fiscal standpoint, is it a better decision to buy a condo? Is the mantra of “buy if you can” still true in this day and age? It seems the rate of inflation of condo prices is lesser than the rate of home prices, so I’m unsure if we’re just better off renting until we can afford to get into a stand alone home.

Any advice appreciated. Thank you.