owning a house

[theicecreamdan]

How much does it actually cost to own a house?

I'm getting ready to move out again with a different set of roommates and I'm starting to realize how pointless it is to pay rent. So I'm curious about how much it actually costs to get into a house, mortgage etc, and whether or not its possible for a group of college students to put together the money to take on such an endeavor.

I think if I were to actually figure out that most of the ownership is possible I might be able to get some money from family to get a down payment.

Im mostly curious about southern california, but I put this in off-topic because I would like to know about other areas as well.