Rent vs buy in Rancho Cucamonga, CA
In Rancho Cucamonga, California, typical rent is $2,786 /mo and a typical home is $779,249.
Renting comes out ahead by $53k over 7 years
Using Rancho Cucamonga's typical rent, plus its typical home value, with a 20% down payment and today's mortgage rate. You reach the break-even point in year 11.
Opinion with clear labels and shown math. These are estimates, not quotes. The stamp updates when you change a number.
- Lead for renting
- $53k after 7 years
- Break-even point
- At year 11 when owning catches up
- Full cost of owning
- $6,543 each month year 1, against $2,786 rent
Change my numbers
The stamp relies on Rancho Cucamonga's typical rent, along with its typical home value. If you change your rent, purchase price or time period, the result can reverse.
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Enter your rent, price and down payment figures. Your entries change the stamp.
Is it cheaper to rent or buy in Rancho Cucamonga?
When you include the money returned after a sale, renting costs $53,049 less over 7 years. Renting costs less throughout the first 10 years. In year 11, owning catches up.
Renting Owning Net cost so far, shown by year.
Average rent compared with mortgage payments in Rancho Cucamonga
Year 1 includes every monthly cost at Rancho Cucamonga's typical price, not just rent and the mortgage.
| Each month, year 1 | Amount | What it is |
|---|---|---|
| Rent | $2,786 | All of it, every month |
| Mortgage payment | $4,248 | $3,745 of it is interest in year 1 |
| Property tax | $448 | 0.69% of the value a year |
| Insurance | $110 | Census median for the city |
| Upkeep | $649 | 1% of the value a year |
| Owning, cash out | $5,456 | $504 of it builds equity |
| Lost return on the down payment | $1,267 | At 8.3% a year, this is what the cash would earn |
| Buying costs, spread out | $325 | 3.5% of the price over 7 years |
| True cost of owning | $6,543 | Cash paid, minus the equity portion, plus both entries listed above |
Figures behind the Rancho Cucamonga result
- Typical home value: Zillow ZHVI, September 2026
- $779,249
- Typical rent: Zillow ZORI, September 2026
- $2,786 /mo
- A 20% down payment avoids private mortgage insurance, and the engine does not model that insurance.
- 20%
- Mortgage rate from Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey (FRED MORTGAGE30US)
- 7.24%
- Growth in home prices, based on FHFA house price index, California, 1995 to 2025
- Each year: 5.3%
- Rent growth: CPI primary residence rent, yearly growth 2006 to 2026
- Each year: 3.5%
- Savings return: 60% S&P 500 with dividends plus 40% 10-year Treasuries, rebalanced each year, 1928 to 2025
- 8.3% each year
- Property tax: Census ACS 2020-2024, Rancho Cucamonga
- 0.69% of the value
- Home insurance: Census ACS 2020-2024, Rancho Cucamonga
- $110 /mo
- Maintenance based on Fannie Mae, low end of 1% to 4%
- Each year, 1% of value
- Buying costsFreddie Mac, midpoint between 2% and 5%
- Equals 3.5% of price
- Selling costs: Agent commission plus closing costs
- 6% of the price
What could change the result in Rancho Cucamonga?
Each line shows the threshold where Rancho Cucamonga's 7-year result changes, while all other factors remain the same.
Renting wins if
- With home price growth below 6.1% a year, we use California's long-run rate of 5.3%.
- The mortgage rate remains above 6.03%.
- A comparable home rents for under $3,350 a month, while the local typical rent is $2,786.
- Your move happens before year 11.
Buying is better if
- Home prices rise by more than 6.1% a year.
- Today's rate is 7.24%, but you secure one below 6.03%.
- Your monthly cost to rent the same home would exceed $3,350.
- You stay for 11 years or more.
Rancho Cucamonga compared with the other 812 cities
| Measure | Rancho Cucamonga | Median city |
|---|---|---|
| Typical home value | $779,249 | $422,451 |
| Typical rent | $2,786 /mo | $1,837 /mo |
| Price-to-rent ratio | 23.3 (#201 of 813) | 18.5 |
| Home prices, last 10 years | 5.6% a year | 6.2% a year |
| Rents, last 5 years | 1.9% a year | 4% a year |
| Property tax | 0.69% | 0.87% |
| Households that rent | 38% | 42% |
Data come from Zillow ZHVI and ZORI, Census ACS 2020-2024.
Other California cities
- Rent. Los Angeles, CA has a $111k advantage for renting.
- Rent. Renting leads by $108k in San Diego, CA.
- Rent. San Jose, CA gives renting a $210k lead.
- Rent. San Francisco, CA gives renting a $128k edge.
- Buy. Fresno, CA. Buying saves you $22k.
- A toss-up in Sacramento, CA, where rent leads by $3k.
- For Long Beach, CA, renting comes out ahead by $111k.
- Rent. Oakland, CA. Renting saves you $44k.
- For Bakersfield, CA, buying comes out ahead by $11k.
- For Anaheim, CA, renting comes out ahead by $115k.
- For Stockton, CA, buying comes out ahead by $16k.
- For Riverside, CA, renting comes out ahead by $27k.