If you are trying to decide whether you should buy a home or rent, a new tool developed by Zillow may help. The new tool called the “breakeven horizon” determines the number of years you will need to own and live in a home until it becomes more financially advantageous than renting the same home. Based on the “breakeven horizon”, Scottsdale, Arizona is among the most favorable for buying with home buyers breaking even after living less than 2.3 years in the home.
“Across most of the country, historic levels of affordability make buying a home a better decision than ever, especially considering rents have risen more than 5 percent over the past year,” said Stan Humphries, Zillow chief economist. “This is the first analysis of metros and cities that presents the buy versus rent decision in an intuitive way by telling consumers how long they must live in the home before buying breaks even with renting financially.”
For more information and to see the breakeven by metro and city area, click here.