Is buying in Manhattan ever financially rational anymore?

Before I completely put the idea of buying in NYC to bed, I want a sanity check. Am I missing anything major here?

Reasons buying seems irrational:

Property taxes and common charges alone often exceed comparable rent, before even touching the mortgage payment.
Condo amenities are usually worse than new rental buildings and still cost more to maintain.
HOA boards often overspend, lack basic cost knowledge, and don’t know how to manage or negotiate with contractors, leading to inflated maintenance and repair costs.
Big ticket items elevators, roofs, boilers, facades come as special assessments on top of monthly HOA, and costs keep rising with regulations.
Renovations and modifications are heavily restricted and sometimes worse than renting.
HOA fees grow roughly in line with or faster than rent and never go down.
Liquidity is terrible. Units can sit for a year or more.
Transaction costs are brutal on both buy and sell.
Insurance costs are multiples of renter's insurance, and required.
Energy efficiency laws, facade inspections and other compliance costs are mandatory and getting stricter every year.
Ownership in NYC does not meaningfully increase freedoms.