It’s cheaper to be a tenant than paying a mortgage in the country’s biggest city these days Bankrate Research Found.
Consumer Financial Services Companies compared average monthly mortgage payments to the average monthly rents for the 50 major US Metros in 2025, including insurance and taxes.
The study found that among all types of homes, apartments and townhouses, an average of 38% less leases than US mortgages.
Average monthly mortgage payments Median home As of February 2025, it rose 2.4% to $2,768, according to Redfin data. In comparison, the total cost of average rent and renter insurance increased at around $2,000, down more than 1% since 2024.
“I feel that households working on budgets are much easier to continue renting than they go through the costs of homeownership,” Joel Berner, senior economist at Realtor.com, said in a statement. “But they need to consider the fairness and generational wealth they can build by owning a home that they cannot rent.”
These price distinctions are not evenly distributed across the country. Depending on where a person lives, the metro at the top of the area saw a slimmer or wider margin Rental and purchase costs.
Metro with the smallest price gap between rental and purchase was concentrated mostly Rust beltincluding Detroit (2% difference), Philadelphia (10.3%) and Cleveland (11.5%).
The biggest cost gap between renting and purchasing is West The tech hubs in San Francisco, San Jose, California, and Seattle saw a gap in purchase wages of 190.7%, 185.6% and 119.5%, respectively.
While buying in places with the smallest gaps may be appealing, multiple housing experts said bankrates’ financial victory doesn’t mean paying attention to the wind.
“It’s important that it’s well prepared, well researched and well supported by the housing experts you bring together as a team,” Zillow Chief Economist Skylar Olsen said in a statement.
“You’re trying to find a great match at your home over the years to come,” Olsen added. “I’m not in a hurry.”
