Rent vs buy in Haverhill, MA
In Haverhill, Massachusetts, the typical rent is $2,258 /mo and the typical home costs $545,809.
Renting comes out $36k ahead across 7 years
Inputs: today's mortgage rate, 20% down, and Haverhill's typical rent and typical home value. Break-even point: year 12.
Clearly labeled opinion, with the math shown. These are estimates, not quotes. Adjust a number and the stamp updates.
- Renting leads by
- $36k after 7 years
- Break-even point
- Year: 12 when owning catches up
- Actual cost of owning
- $4,776 /mo year 1, against $2,258 rent
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In Haverhill, is it cheaper to rent or buy?
Across 7 years, renting saves $36,290 after counting the money returned to you when you sell. For the first 11 years, renting costs less. In year 12, owning catches up.
Rent. Own. Running net cost by year.
Haverhill's average rent compared with its mortgage payment
Rent and mortgage payments tell only part of the story. Below are all of the monthly costs for year 1, at Haverhill's typical price.
| Each month, year 1 | Amount | What it is |
|---|---|---|
| Rent | $2,258 | All of it, every month |
| Mortgage payment | $2,976 | $2,623 of it is interest in year 1 |
| Property tax | $478 | 1.05% of the value a year |
| Insurance | $106 | Census median for the city |
| Upkeep | $455 | 1% of the value a year |
| Owning, cash out | $4,014 | $353 of it builds equity |
| Lost return on the down payment | $887 | Annual earnings on the cash at 8.3% |
| Buying costs, spread out | $227 | 3.5% of the price over 7 years |
| True cost of owning | $4,776 | Cash paid out minus the equity portion, plus the two amounts listed above |
The figures supporting Haverhill's result
- Typical home value from Zillow ZHVI, September 2026
- $545,809
- Typical rent from Zillow ZORI, September 2026
- $2,258 /mo
- Private mortgage insurance is avoided with a 20% down payment, and the engine does not model it.
- 20%
- Mortgage rate: Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey (FRED MORTGAGE30US)
- 7.24%
- How home prices grew: FHFA house price index for Massachusetts, 1995 to 2025
- 5.1% per year
- Rent growth rate, yearly, from CPI rent of primary residence, 2006 to 2026
- Yearly rate: 3.5%
- Return on savings: 60% in S&P 500 with dividends, 40% in 10-year Treasuries, rebalanced each year, 1928 to 2025
- Each year: 8.3%
- Property tax data from Census ACS 2020-2024, Haverhill
- 1.05% of the value
- Home insurance data from Census ACS 2020-2024, Haverhill
- $106 each month
- Upkeep: Fannie Mae, 1% to 4% range, low end
- 1% yearly, applied to the value
- Costs of buyingFreddie Mac, 2% to 5% midpoint
- Price times 3.5%
- Selling costs include Agent commission plus closing costs
- 6% of the price
What would reverse the Haverhill result?
For Haverhill, each line marks where the 7-year verdict changes while all other inputs stay the same.
When renting wins
- Home prices grow under 5.9% a year (our figure: 5.1%, Massachusetts's rate over the long run).
- The mortgage rate remains above 6.06%.
- Renting a home like this costs under $2,650 each month (typical here: $2,258).
- Before year 12, you move.
Buying wins in these cases
- Home price growth above 5.9% a year.
- You lock in a mortgage rate under 6.06% (today's is 7.24%).
- For the same home, your rent would run above $2,650 monthly.
- You stay for 12 years or longer.
Haverhill compared with the other 812 cities
| Measure | Haverhill | Median city |
|---|---|---|
| Typical home value | $545,809 | $422,451 |
| Typical rent | $2,258 /mo | $1,837 /mo |
| Price-to-rent ratio | 20.1 (#328 of 813) | 18.5 |
| Home prices, last 10 years | 6.9% a year | 6.2% a year |
| Rents, last 5 years | 4.7% a year | 4% a year |
| Property tax | 1.05% | 0.87% |
| Households that rent | 37% | 42% |
Data comes from Zillow ZHVI and ZORI, Census ACS 2020-2024.
Other Massachusetts cities
- Renting wins by $10k in Boston, MA.
- Renting wins by $8k in Worcester, MA.
- Buying wins by $18k in Springfield, MA.
- Renting wins by $83k in Cambridge, MA.
- Renting wins by $9k in Lowell, MA.
- Renting wins by $19k in Brockton, MA.
- Renting wins by $45k in Lynn, MA.
- Renting wins by $51k in Quincy, MA.
- Rent. New Bedford, MA. Renting comes out $40k ahead.
- Rent. Fall River, MA. Renting comes out $29k ahead.
- Rent. Newton, MA. Renting comes out $317k ahead.
- It's a toss-up. Lawrence, MA. Renting leads by $2k.