Before you jump onto the mining train, please consider this advice from a veteran miner:
https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=663066.msg7514953#msg7514953Basically do it for fun, for stealthiness (which you won't get unless you plop down at least $500K), or to help support the network at your pocket's expense. Don't do it for economic reasons.
One could do it for economic reasons, if he has access to cheap electricity. And more so if the miner also replaces a space heater
But of course, to profit from this, Bitcoin's price would have to go up considerably and hodling is necessary.
I have access to about 20KW of free power. I was running only 5 BFL singles until 4 weeks ago when I shut them off. I don't live in the place where I have the free power so the heat doesn't even bother me. I have been mining since 2011.
If an old miner like me can't see a profit in buying ASIC hardware and running it on free electricity then how can anybody else who has to pay for electricity. With the exception of people using electrical heating systems almost every miner is projected to be a losing proposition. If you're waiting on BTC to go up in price, why even get involved with mining in the first place?