The rent-or-buy decision turns on how long you plan to stay rather than on the current rent alone. With the Saskatchewan REALTORS Association benchmark at $444,700, Saskatoon ownership costs sit closer to rent than in a market like Toronto or Vancouver, which shortens the break-even period.
Renting keeps you flexible while you decide on a neighbourhood or a job situation settles, while buying starts building equity immediately, provided you plan to stay long enough to absorb the closing costs on both ends of a purchase.
Pulling current Lakeridge rental listings alongside a realistic mortgage estimate for a comparable purchase price is the only way to answer this for your specific situation rather than a citywide generalization.
Get your hand-reviewed valuation from Joel Dyck.