Unless he was planning to take up employment in the same location as the university it would be sensible to live in rented accommodation rather that buy a property for a few years and then have the hassle of selling.
And not all renters are dim witts, for some people renting is the better option due to the financial implications that come with owning a business that could fail overnight. A grower of tomatoes lost his business when a hail storm destroyed the green houses and the crop that had already been sold. By renting his home he did not lose it in the resultant financial disaster.
) and I would have been at the property in question next day. Guess who sold off the DLOs ( direct labour organisations) 