I feel that owning your aircraft is the only way to go.
I fly with a great bunch of guys from Kilcoy and Boona, and average 150 Hrs a year. There is no way I could afford to rent an aircraft at current rates.
The Savannah I built is a great machine, and the Rotax is very reliable and relatively low maintenance.
I am also fortunate that I own my strip ( you have to live somewhere), so there's no politics involved, and the mowing costs are minimal, as the local farmer wants the grass. The 1hr 20 min drive to work is well worth it.
Some idiot (I thought) told me "Why don't you build your own aircraft". It took me a while to investigate it, but it worked out very well.