Rent vs buy in Rialto, CA

Rialto, California has a typical rent of $2,675 /mo and a typical home price of $586,960.

Buy

Over 7 years, buying comes out ahead by $13k

Today's mortgage rate and 20% down are combined with Rialto's typical rent and home value. The break-even point occurs in year 7.

Opinion, clearly marked, with the math shown. These are estimates, not quotes. If you change a number, the stamp changes.

Ownership leads by: $13k
Point of break-even: Year 7
The real cost to own: $4,941 monthly

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The stamp takes the typical rent and home value for Rialto's market as its inputs. Your rent, price and years can change the result.

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Is buying or renting cheaper in Rialto?

Buying costs less by $12,837 over 7 years, counting the money you get back when you sell. In year 7, owning's net cost falls below renting's and remains lower.

Renting Owning Running net cost, year by year.

Rialto: average rent compared with mortgage payment

Rent and the mortgage don't show every cost. Here are all monthly costs during year 1 at Rialto's typical price.

Each month, year 1	Amount	What it is
Rent	$2,675	All of it, every month
Mortgage payment	$3,200	$2,821 of it is interest in year 1
Property tax	$338	0.69% of the value a year
Insurance	$95	Census median for the city
Upkeep	$489	1% of the value a year
Owning, cash out	$4,122	$379 of it builds equity
Lost return on the down payment	$954	At 8.3% a year, this is what the cash would earn.
Buying costs, spread out	$245	3.5% of the price over 7 years
True cost of owning	$4,941	Cash out, minus the equity share, plus both lines above

How the Rialto verdict adds up

Typical home valueZillow ZHVI, September 2026: $586,960
Typical rentZillow ZORI, September 2026: $2,675 /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, California, 1995 to 2025: 5.3% 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, Rialto: 0.69% of value
Home insuranceCensus ACS 2020-2024, Rialto: $95 /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

Which conditions would reverse the Rialto result?

For Rialto, each line shows when its 7-year verdict changes while all other inputs stay unchanged.

When renting wins

Annual home price growth stays below 5.0%. For the calculation, we use California's long-run rate of 5.3%.
A mortgage rate remains above 7.63%.
Comparable homes rent for under $2,540 each month, while the local typical figure is $2,675.
Your move comes before year 7.

When buying wins

Prices for homes rise by more than 5.0% a year.
A mortgage rate below 7.63% is locked in (today's is 7.24%).
Renting that same home would cost you over $2,540 a month.
You remain there for 7 years or more.

How Rialto compares with the other 812 cities

Measure	Rialto	Median city
Typical home value	$586,960	$422,451
Typical rent	$2,675 /mo	$1,837 /mo
Price-to-rent ratio	18.3 (#419 of 813)	18.5
Home prices, last 10 years	7.1% a year	6.2% a year
Property tax	0.69%	0.87%
Households that rent	34%	42%

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

More cities in California

Renting wins by $111k: Los Angeles, CA.
Renting wins by $108k: San Diego, CA.
Renting wins by $210k: San Jose, CA.
Renting wins by $128k: San Francisco, CA.
Buying wins by $22k: Fresno, CA.

California rent vs buy: the state's numbers