Rent vs buy in San Ramon, CA

A typical home in San Ramon, California costs $1,447,415, while the typical rent is $3,121 /mo.

Rent

Over 7 years, renting comes out $280k ahead

Using 20% down and today's mortgage rate, the figures reflect San Ramon's typical home value and rent. The break-even point arrives in year 28.

A clearly labeled opinion with the math shown. These are estimates, not quotes. The stamp updates whenever one of the figures changes.

Lead for renting: $280k
Break-even point: Year 28
Actual cost of ownership: $12,033 each month

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In San Ramon, is renting or buying cheaper?

Once you include money returned from the sale, renting costs $279,534 less over 7 years. For the first 27 years, renting costs less. In year 28, owning catches up.

Rent. Own. The net cost so far, broken down by year.

San Ramon: average rent against mortgage payment

In year 1, here's every monthly cost based on San Ramon's typical price, not just rent and mortgage.

Each month, year 1	Amount	What it is
Rent	$3,121	All of it, every month
Mortgage payment	$7,891	$6,956 of it is interest in year 1
Property tax	$796	0.66% of the value a year
Insurance	$119	Census median for the city
Upkeep	$1,206	1% of the value a year
Owning, cash out	$10,013	$936 of it builds equity
Lost return on the down payment	$2,353	Cash earnings at 8.3% each year
Buying costs, spread out	$603	3.5% of the price over 7 years
True cost of owning	$12,033	Cash out, with the equity part subtracted and the two prior lines added

San Ramon verdict: the numbers behind it

Typical home valueZillow ZHVI, September 2026: $1,447,415
Typical rentZillow ZORI, September 2026: $3,121 /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, San Ramon: 0.66% of value
Home insuranceCensus ACS 2020-2024, San Ramon: $119 /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 would make the San Ramon result flip?

Every line marks a shift in San Ramon's 7-year verdict. All other settings stay the same.

Conditions for renting to win

Annual home price growth stays below 7.4%. We use California's long-run rate of 5.3%.
The mortgage rate remains higher than 3.77%.
For a home like this, rent is under $6,120 each month; the typical amount here is $3,121.
Your move comes before year 28.

Conditions for buying to win

Annual home price growth is more than 7.4%.
A mortgage rate below 3.77% is what you lock (today's is 7.24%).
The same home would rent for more than $6,120 monthly.
You remain in the home for 28 years or more.

How San Ramon compares with the other 812 cities

Measure	San Ramon	Median city
Typical home value	$1,447,415	$422,451
Typical rent	$3,121 /mo	$1,837 /mo
Price-to-rent ratio	38.6 (#14 of 813)	18.5
Home prices, last 10 years	5% a year	6.2% a year
Rents, last 5 years	2.9% a year	4% a year
Property tax	0.66%	0.87%
Households that rent	29%	42%

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

More cities in California

In Los Angeles, CA, renting leads by $111k.
In San Diego, CA, renting leads by $108k.
In San Jose, CA, renting leads by $210k.
In San Francisco, CA, renting leads by $128k.
In Fresno, CA, buying leads by $22k.

California's rent vs buy numbers