Rent vs buy in Nashville, TN
In Nashville, Tennessee, the typical rent is $1,820 /mo and the typical home costs $425,889.
Renting comes out ahead by $24k over 7 years
Assumed conditions include 20% down and today's mortgage rate, using typical rent and home value figures for Nashville's market. The break-even point is year 11.
A clearly labeled opinion, with the math shown. These are estimates, not quotes. The stamp updates whenever you change a number.
- Ahead with renting
- $24k after 7 years
- Break-even point
- year 11 when owning catches up
- Actual cost of owning
- $3,594 /mo year 1, against $1,820 rent
Change my numbers
The stamp relies on typical rent and home value figures for Nashville's market. Different values for your rent, home price and time period can reverse the result.
Do your numbers differ from the city's?
Enter your rent, home price and down payment. The stamp updates with your entries.
Is it cheaper to rent or buy in Nashville?
Renting costs $23,796 less over 7 years, including the money returned to you when you sell. For the first 10 years, renting costs less. By year 11, owning catches up.
Renting. Owning. Net cost by year so far.
Average rent compared with mortgage payment in Nashville
Rent and the mortgage don't tell the whole story. Here are all monthly costs for year 1 at Nashville's typical price.
| Each month, year 1 | Amount | What it is |
|---|---|---|
| Rent | $1,820 | All of it, every month |
| Mortgage payment | $2,322 | $2,047 of it is interest in year 1 |
| Property tax | $213 | 0.6% of the value a year |
| Insurance | $110 | Census median for the city |
| Upkeep | $355 | 1% of the value a year |
| Owning, cash out | $3,000 | $275 of it builds equity |
| Lost return on the down payment | $692 | The annual return on the cash at 8.3% |
| Buying costs, spread out | $177 | 3.5% of the price over 7 years |
| True cost of owning | $3,594 | Cash paid, minus the equity portion, plus the two costs listed above |
The figures behind Nashville's result
- Typical home valueZillow ZHVI, September 2026
- $425,889
- Typical rentZillow ZORI, September 2026
- $1,820 /mo
- Down payment20% avoids private mortgage insurance, which the engine does not model
- 20%
- Mortgage rateFreddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey (FRED MORTGAGE30US)
- 7.24%
- Home price growthFHFA house price index, Tennessee, 1995 to 2025
- 4.7% a year
- Rent growthCPI rent of primary residence, yearly growth 2006 to 2026
- 3.5% a year
- Return on savings60% S&P 500 with dividends and 40% 10-year Treasuries, rebalanced yearly, 1928 to 2025
- 8.3% a year
- Property taxCensus ACS 2020-2024, Nashville
- 0.6% of value
- Home insuranceCensus ACS 2020-2024, Nashville
- $110 /mo
- MaintenanceFannie Mae, low end of 1% to 4%
- 1% of value a year
- Buying costsFreddie Mac, middle of 2% to 5%
- 3.5% of price
- Selling costsAgent commission plus closing costs
- 6% of price
What would flip the outcome in Nashville?
Each line marks where Nashville's 7-year result changes, with all other figures held constant.
When renting comes out ahead
- The condition is home prices growing slower than 5.4% a year, and our calculation uses 4.7% as Tennessee's long-run rate.
- For this condition, the mortgage rate remains above 6.25%.
- For a home like this, the monthly rent comes to less than $2,070. Here, the typical figure is $1,820.
- Before year 11, you move.
When buying comes out ahead
- Each year, home prices grow at a rate above 5.4%.
- You secure a mortgage rate under 6.25% (today's rate is 7.24%).
- You would pay more than $2,070 monthly to rent the same home.
- You remain there for 11 years or more.
How Nashville compares with the other 812 cities
| Measure | Nashville | Median city |
|---|---|---|
| Typical home value | $425,889 | $422,451 |
| Typical rent | $1,820 /mo | $1,837 /mo |
| Price-to-rent ratio | 19.5 (#356 of 813) | 18.5 |
| Home prices, last 10 years | 6% a year | 6.2% a year |
| Rents, last 5 years | 2% a year | 4% a year |
| Property tax | 0.60% | 0.87% |
| Households that rent | 48% | 42% |
Sources: Zillow ZHVI and ZORI, Census ACS 2020-2024.
More cities across Tennessee
- In Memphis, TN, buying wins by $36k.
- In Knoxville, TN, renting wins by $10k.
- In Chattanooga, TN, renting wins by $11k.
- In Clarksville, TN, renting wins by $19k.
- In Murfreesboro, TN, renting wins by $36k.
- In Franklin, TN, renting wins by $204k.
- In Johnson City, TN, buying wins by $4k.
- In Jackson, TN, buying wins by $25k.
- In Hendersonville, TN, renting wins by $77k.
- In Smyrna, TN, renting wins by $19k.
- In Spring Hill, TN, renting wins by $45k.
- In Kingsport, TN, it's a toss-up, with buying ahead by $3k.