Rent vs buy in Oak Lawn, IL
Typical rent $1,717 /mo, typical home $298,866: that's Oak Lawn, Illinois.
Over 7 years, renting comes out ahead by $47k
Today's mortgage rate, 20% down, and the typical rent and home value for Oak Lawn's market. No break-even occurs within 30 years.
Clearly labelled opinion with the math shown. These figures are estimates, not quotes. If you change a number, the stamp changes with it.
- Renting leads by
- $47k after 7 years
- Break-even point
- 30+ years owning never catches up sooner
- Full cost of owning
- $2,937 /mo year 1, against $1,717 rent
Change my numbers
The stamp takes the typical rent and home value for Oak Lawn's market. Your rent, price and time period can change the result.
Are your numbers different from the city's?
Enter your own figures: down payment, price and rent. The stamp updates as those numbers change.
Is renting or buying cheaper in Oak Lawn?
Over 7 years, renting costs $47,203 less after counting the money you get back when you sell. In every year shown, renting's net cost is lower than owning's. Owning doesn't make up the gap within 30 years.
Rent. Owning a home. Year-by-year net cost so far.
Average rent compared with mortgage payment in Oak Lawn
Rent and the mortgage don't tell the whole story. At Oak Lawn's typical price, here's every monthly cost for year 1.
| Each month, year 1 | Amount | What it is |
|---|---|---|
| Rent | $1,717 | All of it, every month |
| Mortgage payment | $1,629 | $1,436 of it is interest in year 1 |
| Property tax | $545 | 2.19% of the value a year |
| Insurance | $96 | Census median for the city |
| Upkeep | $249 | 1% of the value a year |
| Owning, cash out | $2,520 | $193 of it builds equity |
| Lost return on the down payment | $486 | What your cash would earn yearly at 8.3% |
| Buying costs, spread out | $125 | 3.5% of the price over 7 years |
| True cost of owning | $2,937 | Cash paid out, minus equity, plus the two amounts above |
Oak Lawn figures behind the result
- Value of a typical home: Zillow ZHVI, September 2026
- $298,866
- Typical rent from Zillow ZORI, September 2026
- $1,717 a month
- With 20% down, you avoid private mortgage insurance. The engine doesn't model it.
- 20%
- Mortgage rate used: Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey (FRED MORTGAGE30US)
- 7.24%
- Growth in home prices: FHFA house price index, Illinois, 1995 to 2025
- Each year: 3.3%
- Rent growthYearly growth of the CPI rent of primary residence, 2006 to 2026
- Each year: 3.5%
- Savings return: 40% 10-year Treasuries and 60% S&P 500 with dividends; rebalanced yearly, 1928 to 2025
- Yearly return: 8.3%
- Tax on property: Census ACS 2020-2024, Oak Lawn
- 2.19% of property value.
- Insurance for the home: Census ACS 2020-2024, Oak Lawn
- Monthly cost: $96
- Home maintenance: Fannie Mae, low end of 1% to 4%
- Each year: 1% of value
- Buying costsFreddie Mac, halfway between 2% and 5%
- 3.5% of the purchase price
- Selling costsAgent commission and closing costs
- 6% of the price
What would reverse the result in Oak Lawn?
Each line shows the point where the 7-year Oak Lawn result changes, while all other factors stay as they are.
Renting is cheaper when
- Home prices grow by less than 5.3% a year (we use Illinois's long-run rate of 3.3%).
- The rate on a mortgage remains above 4.41%.
- Less than $2,220 a month to rent a home like this (typical here: $1,717).
- If you move at any point during the next 30 years, ownership won't catch up with renting at these numbers.
When buying wins
- Home prices grow at more than 5.3% a year.
- The mortgage rate you lock in sits below 4.41%, while today's is 7.24%.
- If you rented that same home, the monthly cost would be more than $2,220.
Oak Lawn compared with the other 812 cities
| Measure | Oak Lawn | Median city |
|---|---|---|
| Typical home value | $298,866 | $422,451 |
| Typical rent | $1,717 /mo | $1,837 /mo |
| Price-to-rent ratio | 14.5 (#652 of 813) | 18.5 |
| Home prices, last 10 years | 5.9% a year | 6.2% a year |
| Property tax | 2.19% | 0.87% |
| Households that rent | 17% | 42% |
Sources here: Zillow ZHVI and ZORI, Census ACS 2020-2024.
More cities in Illinois
- Toss-up. Chicago, IL. Buying leads by $3k, so it's nearly even.
- Rent. Aurora, IL. Renting leads by $12k.
- Rent. Naperville, IL. Renting is ahead by $198k.
- Rent. Joliet, IL. Renting is ahead by $30k.
- Rent. Rockford, IL. Renting is ahead by $22k.
- Rent. Elgin, IL. Renting is ahead by $58k.
- Rent. Springfield, IL. Renting is ahead by $13k.
- Buy. Peoria, IL. Buying is ahead by $15k.
- Rent. Champaign, IL. Renting is ahead by $29k.
- Rent. Waukegan, IL. Renting is ahead by $24k.
- Rent. Cicero, IL gives renting a $71k lead.
- Rent. Bloomington, IL gives renting a $68k lead.