The Philly region is one of only four metros where buying a home is cheaper than renting, analysis says

Philadelphia is holding on to its reputation as a relatively affordable place to buy a home.

Home buyers across the country have been facing high prices and rising mortgage rates, but in the Philadelphia region, the monthly cost of owning a home in March was still slightly cheaper than the cost of renting — one of only a few areas of the country where that was true, according to an analysis by the online real estate brokerage Redfin.

A median-priced home in the Philadelphia metropolitan area costs roughly 7% — about $130 — less per month to own than to rent. Roughly three in five properties were cheaper to buy, according to Redfin’s analysis of single-family homes, condos, co-ops, and townhouses.

The region was one of only four major metros where buying was cheaper than renting. In the Detroit area, the typical home was 24% less expensive to own than to rent. In the Cleveland and Houston metros, homes were 4% and 1% less expensive to own, respectively.

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These four metro areas are all generally more affordable than other large metros and have lower prices than national averages, said Taylor Marr, deputy chief economist at Redfin. Properties in these areas don’t appreciate as rapidly as those in boom towns such as Austin, Texas.

And rents don’t fall as much as home prices do, Marr said, so “it’s a little bit easier for it to be a bit more favorable to own.”

For homes elsewhere in the country to become more affordable to own than to rent, mortgage interest rates would have to fall, according to Redfin’s analysis, since elevated rates inflate monthly mortgage payments.

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“It was almost surprising there were any places” where buying was cheaper than renting, Marr said. “Higher interest rates really changes the equation with owning and renting.”

In the 50 U.S. metros with the highest populations, a median-priced home cost about 25% — $670 — more per month to own than to rent. The monthly mortgage payment for a typical home was $3,385, compared to a rent of $2,715.

Redfin’s analysis assumed a 5% down payment. Having enough money for this up-front cost is often a barrier for first-time buyers who can’t use profits from a home sale. Higher home prices mean higher down payments.

» READ MORE: Philly’s first-time home buyers will get more help from the city when its grant program returns

If households can afford a down payment and monthly mortgage, buying a home can make financial sense because they’re building equity. But buying doesn’t make sense for everyone, including households that move a lot and wouldn’t be in their home long enough to build equity.

Redfin’s analysis also is based on its estimates of home values in March and a 6.5% mortgage interest rate, which was the average rate in March.

Rates are continuing to trend up after some dips and are about where they were in mid-March. The average 30-year fixed mortgage rate was 6.57% as of May 25, according to government-backed mortgage buyer Freddie Mac.

An unrelated study of home sales from January through November 2022 by Attom, a national real estate data company, found that renting a home was more affordable than buying in the country’s largest counties, including Philadelphia. Although rents had risen faster than home prices, the city was one of the most affordable large counties for renters.