Rent vs buy in Billings, MT
In Billings, Montana, typical rent is $1,393 /mo and the typical home is $401,071.
Over 7 years, renting wins by $43k.
Today's mortgage rate and 20% down are combined with Billings's typical rent and home value. Costs balance in year 15.
Clearly labelled opinion, with the math shown. These are estimates, not quotes. Any number you change also alters the stamp.
- Amount by which renting leads
- $43k after 7 years
- When costs balance
- year 15 when owning catches up
- Total cost of ownership
- Monthly cost: $3,501 year 1, against $1,393 rent
Change my numbers
Billings's typical rent and home value determine what the stamp shows. The result can change with your rent, price and number of years.
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Enter a rent, price and down payment of your own. Those figures alter the stamp.
Is it cheaper to rent or buy in Billings?
For 7 years, renting saves $43,072 when you include the money returned from the sale. Renting costs less during the first 14 years. In year 15, owning catches up.
Renting. Home ownership. Year-by-year net cost to date.
Billings: average rent against mortgage payment
Rent and mortgage payments cover only part of the costs. Every monthly expense in year 1 appears here at Billings's typical price.
| Each month, year 1 | Amount | What it is |
|---|---|---|
| Rent | $1,393 | All of it, every month |
| Mortgage payment | $2,187 | $1,927 of it is interest in year 1 |
| Property tax | $281 | 0.84% of the value a year |
| Insurance | $140 | Census median for the city |
| Upkeep | $334 | 1% of the value a year |
| Owning, cash out | $2,942 | $259 of it builds equity |
| Lost return on the down payment | $652 | At 8.3% a year, this is what the cash would earn |
| Buying costs, spread out | $167 | 3.5% of the price over 7 years |
| True cost of owning | $3,501 | Cash paid, subtract equity and add both lines listed earlier. |
Billings verdict explained by the figures
- Typical home value: Zillow ZHVI, September 2026
- $401,071
- Typical rent: Zillow ZORI, September 2026
- Per month: $1,393
- With 20% down, private mortgage insurance is avoided, and the engine doesn't model it.
- 20%
- The mortgage rate: Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey (FRED MORTGAGE30US)
- 7.24%
- Price growth for homes: FHFA house price index, Montana, 1995 to 2025
- Annual rate: 5.3%
- Rent growth: CPI rent growth for primary residence, yearly, 2006 to 2026
- Annual rate: 3.5%
- Savings return: allocation assigns 60% to S&P 500 with dividends and 40% to 10-year Treasuries, rebalanced yearly for 1928 through 2025.
- Per year: 8.3%
- Tax on property: Census ACS 2020-2024, Billings
- 0.84% of the value
- Insurance for a home: Census ACS 2020-2024, Billings
- Monthly: $140
- Home upkeepFannie Mae, low end of 1% to 4%
- Each year: 1% of value
- Purchase expensesFreddie Mac, middle of 2% to 5%
- The cost is 3.5% of the price.
- Costs for a saleAgent commission plus closing costs
- The cost is 6% of the price.
What changes the result in Billings?
Each item below shows the threshold that changes the 7-year verdict in Billings, while all other inputs stay as they are.
Renting is better when
- Home prices grow by less than 6.5% a year. The model uses Montana's long-run rate of 5.3%.
- The mortgage rate remains higher than 5.33%.
- For a home like this, the rent is under $1,850 a month, compared with the local typical $1,393.
- You make your move before year 15.
Home buying wins when
- Home prices rise at more than 6.5% annually.
- You lock in a mortgage rate under 5.33% (today's is 7.24%).
- For the same home, you'd pay more than $1,850 a month to rent.
- You remain for 15 years or longer.
How Billings compares with the other 812 cities
| Measure | Billings | Median city |
|---|---|---|
| Typical home value | $401,071 | $422,451 |
| Typical rent | $1,393 /mo | $1,837 /mo |
| Price-to-rent ratio | 24.0 (#165 of 813) | 18.5 |
| Home prices, last 10 years | 5.5% a year | 6.2% a year |
| Rents, last 5 years | 5.3% a year | 4% a year |
| Property tax | 0.84% | 0.87% |
| Households that rent | 35% | 42% |
Data sources: Zillow ZHVI, plus ZORI, Census ACS 2020-2024.
Other Montana cities
- Rent. In Missoula, MT, renting has the lower cost by $89k.
- Rent. Renting wins by $14k in Great Falls, MT.
- Rent. Bozeman, MT is where renting wins by $80k.