Whether you should rent or buy comes down to one thing most advice ignores: what housing actually costs in the city you’re moving to. A home that’s a steal in one metro is a money pit in another. Compare the real cost of renting and buying in your current city and your new one with the rent vs buy calculator below.
How to read the comparison
Enter both cities and the tool puts median rent and home prices side by side. If buying in your destination costs about the same as renting — or less — it’s worth a closer look. If owning runs far higher, renting first usually wins.
What “buying” really costs
The mortgage payment isn’t the whole bill. Property taxes, insurance, and maintenance add roughly 1.5% to 2.5% of the home’s value every year — on a $400,000 house, that’s another $500–$830 a month. Factor it in before you compare a mortgage to your rent.
The five-year rule
Buying carries upfront costs renting doesn’t — a down payment plus 2%–5% in closing costs — and it takes about five to seven years of equity and appreciation to earn them back. If you won’t stay that long, renting almost always comes out ahead, even when the monthly numbers flatter buying.
What the numbers actually look like
The median U.S. home sold for around $420,000 in 2025 — but that masks huge regional gaps. A typical house runs under $250,000 across much of the Midwest and South and well past $1 million in the priciest coastal metros. Mortgage rates near 7% have pushed monthly ownership costs up sharply, which is why renting is currently cheaper month-to-month in most big cities even though buying builds equity. The one metric that actually settles a rent vs buy call is the price-to-rent ratio: under ~15, buying usually makes sense; over ~21, renting almost always wins. The tool above runs that comparison for any two cities.
Frequently asked questions
How much do home prices vary between cities?
Enormously — easily 4–5× for a similar house. A $250,000 home in one metro can be $1M-plus in another, and that spread is what flips the rent vs buy answer from city to city.
What’s a good price-to-rent ratio for buying?
Under about 15, buying tends to win; 16–20 is a toss-up; over 21, renting usually comes out ahead. Compare your two cities above to see where each one lands.
Is it cheaper to rent or buy in 2026?
In most large U.S. metros, renting is cheaper month-to-month right now thanks to ~7% mortgage rates — but buying builds equity over time that renting never will.
How long until buying beats renting?
Typically five to seven years, once equity and appreciation outrun the upfront down payment and closing costs. Stay less than that and renting usually wins.
Then book the move
Rent or buy on the far end, the move comes first. Price it right with direct, non-broker movers for your route — verified, long-distance carriers you deal with one-on-one, not brokers who hand your job to whoever bids lowest.