Rent vs buy in Sammamish, WA

In Sammamish, Washington, the typical rent is $3,350 /mo and the typical home value is $1,489,177.

Rent

Renting comes out ahead by $281k over 7 years

Using Sammamish's typical rent, home value, 20% down and today's mortgage rate. The break-even point arrives in year 27.

Clearly labelled opinion, with the math shown. These figures are estimates, not quotes. Adjust one figure and the stamp updates.

Renting leads by: $281k
Break-even point: in year 27
Actual cost of ownership: $12,439 each month

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The stamp relies on the typical rent and home value for Sammamish's market. Your rent, price and number of years can change the result.

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In Sammamish, should you rent or buy to spend less?

Renting costs $280,542 less over 7 years, counting the money you get back when you sell. For the first 26 years, renting costs less. In year 27, owning catches up.

Rent. Own. Net cost to date, by year.

Sammamish's average rent compared with the mortgage payment

Rent and the mortgage don't tell the whole story. Here are all monthly costs in year 1, using Sammamish's typical price.

Each month, year 1	Amount	What it is
Rent	$3,350	All of it, every month
Mortgage payment	$8,119	$7,156 of it is interest in year 1
Property tax	$881	0.71% of the value a year
Insurance	$120	Census median for the city
Upkeep	$1,241	1% of the value a year
Owning, cash out	$10,361	$963 of it builds equity
Lost return on the down payment	$2,421	The return on cash at 8.3% a year
Buying costs, spread out	$620	3.5% of the price over 7 years
True cost of owning	$12,439	Cash out, minus the equity share, plus the two lines above

The Sammamish verdict, in numbers

Typical home valueZillow ZHVI, September 2026: $1,489,177
Typical rentZillow ZORI, September 2026: $3,350 /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, Washington, 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, Sammamish: 0.71% of value
Home insuranceCensus ACS 2020-2024, Sammamish: $120 /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 change would flip the Sammamish result?

Each line marks where the 7-year verdict in Sammamish flips, and all other inputs stay the same.

Renting comes out ahead when

Home prices grow by less than 7.4% each year (5.3% is Washington's long-run rate, which we use).
The mortgage rate remains above 3.86%.
For a home like this, rent is under $6,360 each month (typical here: $3,350).
Before year 27, you move.

Buying comes out ahead when

Home price growth runs above 7.4% each year.
You lock in a mortgage rate below 3.86% (currently 7.24%).
You'd pay more than $6,360 a month to rent the same home.
You remain for 27 years or longer.

Sammamish compared with the other 812 cities

Measure	Sammamish	Median city
Typical home value	$1,489,177	$422,451
Typical rent	$3,350 /mo	$1,837 /mo
Price-to-rent ratio	37.0 (#19 of 813)	18.5
Home prices, last 10 years	7.5% a year	6.2% a year
Rents, last 5 years	4.4% a year	4% a year
Property tax	0.71%	0.87%
Households that rent	17%	42%

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

More cities in Washington

Seattle, WA: rent wins by $128k.
Rent wins by $39k. Vancouver, WA.

Washington rent vs buy figures