Rent vs buy in Raleigh, NC

For Raleigh, North Carolina, typical rent is $1,572 /mo and a typical home is $424,663.

Rent

Over 7 years, renting comes out $61k ahead.

With rent and home value at Raleigh's typical levels, plus 20% down and today's mortgage rate. The break-even point is year 24.

This is an opinion, clearly labeled, with the math shown. The figures are estimates, not quotes. Adjust any number, and the stamp updates.

Amount renting is ahead by: $61k
Break-even point: year 24
Full cost of ownership: $3,626 /mo

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For Raleigh's calculation, the stamp takes the city's typical rent and home value as inputs. Changing your rent, price or time period can reverse the result.

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Is it cheaper to rent or buy in Raleigh?

Over 7 years, renting costs $60,945 less, including the money you receive when you sell. During the first 23 years, renting costs less. In year 24, owning catches up.

Renting. Owning. Net cost to date, organized by year.

Raleigh's average rent compared with its mortgage payment

Rent and mortgage payments aren't the whole story. At Raleigh's typical price, these are all monthly costs for year 1.

Each month, year 1	Amount	What it is
Rent	$1,572	All of it, every month
Mortgage payment	$2,315	$2,041 of it is interest in year 1
Property tax	$258	0.73% of the value a year
Insurance	$106	Census median for the city
Upkeep	$354	1% of the value a year
Owning, cash out	$3,033	$275 of it builds equity
Lost return on the down payment	$690	At 8.3% a year, that is what the cash would earn.
Buying costs, spread out	$177	3.5% of the price over 7 years
True cost of owning	$3,626	Cash paid out, less the equity portion, plus the two lines above

Raleigh figures behind the verdict

Typical home valueZillow ZHVI, September 2026: $424,663
Typical rentZillow ZORI, September 2026: $1,572 /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, North Carolina, 1995 to 2025: 4.4% 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, Raleigh: 0.73% of value
Home insuranceCensus ACS 2020-2024, Raleigh: $106 /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 changes would flip the result in Raleigh?

Each line shows where Raleigh's 7-year verdict changes while everything else stays the same.

Renting comes out ahead when

Home prices rise at less than 6.1% a year; our calculation uses 4.4%, North Carolina's long-term rate.
The rate on a mortgage stays above 4.67%.
For a home like this, monthly rent is less than $2,220 (the typical rent here is $1,572).
You make your move before year 24.

When buying comes out ahead

Home prices rise by more than 6.1% a year.
You lock in a mortgage rate under 4.67%; today's rate is 7.24%.
The same home would cost more than $2,220 monthly to rent.
Your stay reaches 24 years or more.

How Raleigh compares with the other 812 cities

Measure	Raleigh	Median city
Typical home value	$424,663	$422,451
Typical rent	$1,572 /mo	$1,837 /mo
Price-to-rent ratio	22.5 (#222 of 813)	18.5
Home prices, last 10 years	5.7% a year	6.2% a year
Rents, last 5 years	2.2% a year	4% a year
Property tax	0.73%	0.87%
Households that rent	49%	42%

Sources: Zillow ZHVI and ZORI, Census ACS 2020-2024.

More cities across North Carolina

Renting costs less in Charlotte, NC by $30k.

Rent vs buy in North Carolina: the state's numbers