you can still buy CS6 last I looked but you better do it pretty soon, as that might not last. I'd also sign up for a communicyt college course for a great discount again if you can. This whole renting requirement may subside. Adobe is going to be suffering some from people who don't want to rent and will stick to cs6 for so long that they will try something new to convince them. Like way cheaper prices or go back to an licensed / ownership model. CS6 still does everything CC does for 99% of people, but Adobe will start to feel the pinch as every year passes. A lot of people hate renting software. Rent to own is ok, but just to rent, that's a bunch of BS for the amount charged in my view.
It seems to be getting harder to run the older versions of Photoshop on newer versions of OSX. Photoshop didn't like the migration from my MacBook to a MacBook Pro. I tried to reinstall from the disc for CS3, but I can't get the installer to run. I'd don't feel like renting it, so starting to look for new options.