HOMEOWNERSHIP MORE AFFORDABLE THAN RENTING IN 72 PERCENT OF MAJOR U.S. CITIES DESPITE GROWING CONSUMER PREFERENCE TO RENTTrulia’s Rent vs. Buy Index Identifies Miami, Las Vegas, Arlington, Mesa and Phoenix As Nation’s Most Affordable Markets to Buy Compared to RentingSAN FRANCISCO, January 24, 2011 – Trulia.com (www.trulia.com), a top site for homebuyers, sellers and renters, today released its latest Rent vs. Buy Index which found that it is more affordable to buy than to rent a two-bedroom home[1] in 72 percent of America’s 50 largest cities[2]. Meanwhile, a nation of renters has emerged as more Americans rent by choice or due to unforeseen financial difficulties. In contrast to this nationwide trend, renting is only less expensive than buying in four of the cities included in this study – namely New York, Seattle, Kansas City and San Francisco. The remaining 10 cities are locations where buying may still be a financially sound long-term decision despite the relative affordability of renting.
“Since the start of the ‘Great Recession,’ many former homeowners have flooded the rental market. Following the principles of supply and demand, renting has become relatively more expensive than buying in most markets,” said Pete Flint, CEO and co-founder of Trulia. “Though necessary for achieving true economic recovery, stricter bank lending practices have also further aggravated the struggling housing market in the short term. Even highly-qualified homebuyers face intense scrutiny on their income, savings, existing debt and credit history before they can get a mortgage loan.”
Cities overwhelmed by foreclosure filings and unemployment, including many cities in Florida, Arizona, Nevada and central California, typically correspond to more affordable markets for prospective buyers; however, there are exceptions. Oakland and Los Angeles, which are experiencing similar rates of unemployment or foreclosure filings as Phoenix, Miami and Sacramento, are still more affordable to renters. Moreover, close proximity to economic centers with promising job growth projections has propped up both the demand for homes and costs of home homeownership in Oakland and Los Angeles.
“Although owning a home is relatively more affordable in most cities, market conditions have caused an interesting demographic swap between traditional renters and buyers,” said Tara-Nicholle Nelson, Consumer Educator for Trulia. “For example, lifelong renters are seizing the opportunity to become homeowners while affordability is high. At the same time, a growing number of long-time homeowners are finding themselves tenants – some by choice and others by necessity.”
Top 10 Cities to Rent vs. Buy
Rank
City
State
Price:Rent Ratio
1.
NY
31
2.
WA
24
3.
MO
21
4.
CA
21
5.
TN
20
6.
CA
20
7.
TX
19
8.
CA
18
9.
OR
18
10.
NM
18
In today’s market there are more Renter’s in Seattle looking for a home to rent. If you are a real estate investor you should have no problem finding a tenant in these times. If you have 25% down and with the right bank to loan you the balance you can certainly cash flow on a property in the area. If you are in a position you should buy now instead of waiting. You don’t want to say I wish I did 20 years from now. Have any questions let us know or comment your thoughts below.
Posted via Seattle Real Estate-Seattle Homes For Sale
