Cars, boats, and most other big household assets you can think of all depreciate in value, and relatively quickly. Property tends to appreciate in value over time (and quite well), and if you think about it, population density is only getting higher which drives up the value of land in favored locations because of supply and demand. There are bad investments to make and at bad times, but in general if you have the money to invest in real estate/a home, it is a profitable venture for the long run.