Rent vs buy in Brockton, MA
A typical home in Brockton, Massachusetts costs $504,762, and typical rent is $2,289 /mo.
Over 7 years, renting wins by $19k
At Brockton's typical home value and rent, with a 20% down payment and today's mortgage rate. Break-even point: year 9.
An opinion with a clear label and the math shown. These are estimates, not quotes. The stamp updates whenever you change a number.
- Renting leads by
- $19k after 7 years
- Break-even point
- year 9 when owning catches up
- Actual cost of owning
- $4,462 /mo year 1, against $2,289 rent
Change my numbers
The stamp relies on Brockton's typical rent and home value. The result can flip depending on your rent, price and years.
Do your figures differ from the city's?
Enter your rent, price and down payment. Your entries change the stamp.
Is renting or buying cheaper in Brockton?
Counting the money returned to you when you sell, renting costs $18,890 less over 7 years. For the first 8 years, renting costs less. Owning catches up during year 9.
Renting. Owning. Net cost to date, by year.
Average rent compared with mortgage payments in Brockton
Rent and the mortgage don't tell the whole story, so here are all the monthly costs for year 1, at Brockton's typical price.
| Each month, year 1 | Amount | What it is |
|---|---|---|
| Rent | $2,289 | All of it, every month |
| Mortgage payment | $2,752 | $2,426 of it is interest in year 1 |
| Property tax | $463 | 1.1% of the value a year |
| Insurance | $122 | Census median for the city |
| Upkeep | $421 | 1% of the value a year |
| Owning, cash out | $3,757 | $326 of it builds equity |
| Lost return on the down payment | $820 | Annual earnings the cash would provide at 8.3% |
| Buying costs, spread out | $210 | 3.5% of the price over 7 years |
| True cost of owning | $4,462 | Cash paid, minus equity, plus the two amounts listed above |
The figures behind Brockton's result
- Typical home value from Zillow data: ZHVI, September 2026
- $504,762
- Typical rent from Zillow data: ZORI, September 2026
- $2,289 /mo
- A 20% down payment avoids private mortgage insurance, and the engine does not model it.
- 20%
- Rate for the mortgage: Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey (FRED MORTGAGE30US)
- 7.24%
- Growth in home prices house price index from FHFA, Massachusetts, 1995 to 2025
- 5.1% each year
- Rate of rent growth CPI rent of primary residence data, yearly growth 2006 to 2026
- 3.5% each year
- Return on savingsS&P 500 with dividends at 60%, 10-year Treasuries at 40%, rebalanced yearly, 1928 to 2025
- 8.3% each year
- Local property tax: Census ACS 2020-2024, Brockton
- 1.1% of the value
- Insurance on the home: Census ACS 2020-2024, Brockton
- $122 each month
- Upkeep costs: Fannie Mae, low end of the 1% to 4% range
- 1% of the value each year
- Costs of buying: Freddie Mac, middle of the 2% to 5% range
- 3.5% of the price
- Selling costs: Agent commission plus closing costs
- 6% of the price
In Brockton, what would flip the result?
Each line shows where Brockton's 7-year verdict changes, with all other factors remaining the same.
Renting comes out ahead when
- Home prices rise less than 5.5% each year (our 5.1% is Massachusetts's long-run rate).
- The rate on the mortgage stays above 6.58%.
- A similar home rents for under $2,490 a month (the typical cost here is $2,289).
- You move before year 9 comes around.
Buying is the better deal when
- Home prices rise by more than 5.5% a year.
- You fix a mortgage rate below 6.58%; right now it is 7.24%.
- Renting that same home would cost you over $2,490 each month.
- You remain for 9 years or more.
Brockton compared with the other 812 cities
| Measure | Brockton | Median city |
|---|---|---|
| Typical home value | $504,762 | $422,451 |
| Typical rent | $2,289 /mo | $1,837 /mo |
| Price-to-rent ratio | 18.4 (#413 of 813) | 18.5 |
| Home prices, last 10 years | 7.3% a year | 6.2% a year |
| Property tax | 1.10% | 0.87% |
| Households that rent | 43% | 42% |
Data from: Zillow's ZHVI and ZORI, Census ACS 2020-2024.
Other Massachusetts cities
- Rent. Boston, MA. Renting comes out ahead by $10k.
- Rent. Worcester, MA. Renting comes out ahead by $8k.
- Buy. Springfield, MA. Buying comes out ahead by $18k.
- Rent. Cambridge, MA. Renting comes out ahead by $83k.
- Rent. Lowell, MA. Renting comes out ahead by $9k.
- Rent. Lynn, MA. Renting comes out ahead by $45k.
- Rent. Quincy, MA. Renting comes out ahead by $51k.
- Rent. New Bedford, MA. Renting comes out ahead by $40k.
- Renting saves $29k in Fall River, MA.
- Renting saves $317k in Newton, MA.
- It's a toss-up in Lawrence, MA, with renting ahead by $2k.
- Renting saves $65k in Somerville, MA.