Rent vs buy in Virginia Beach, VA
In Virginia Beach, Virginia, the typical rent is $2,098 /mo and the typical home is $424,785.
Over 7 years, renting wins by $9k
Today's mortgage rate and 20% down, measured against Virginia Beach's typical rent and typical home value. Break-even point: year 9.
Clearly labelled opinion, with the math shown. These are estimates, not quotes. Adjust any one number and the stamp updates.
- Renting is ahead by
- $9k after 7 years
- Break-even point
- Year 9 when owning catches up
- What owning really costs
- $3,668 per month year 1, against $2,098 rent
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Is it cheaper to rent or buy in Virginia Beach?
Over 7 years, renting comes out $8,713 cheaper once you count what you get back from the sale. For the first 8 years, renting costs less. In year 9, owning catches up.
Rent. Buy. Net cost so far, year by year.
Virginia Beach: average rent next to the mortgage payment
Rent and the mortgage payment don't tell the whole story. Here are all the monthly costs for year 1 at Virginia Beach's typical home price.
| Each month, year 1 | Amount | What it is |
|---|---|---|
| Rent | $2,098 | All of it, every month |
| Mortgage payment | $2,316 | $2,041 of it is interest in year 1 |
| Property tax | $283 | 0.8% of the value a year |
| Insurance | $122 | Census median for the city |
| Upkeep | $354 | 1% of the value a year |
| Owning, cash out | $3,075 | $275 of it builds equity |
| Lost return on the down payment | $690 | What the cash would earn each year at 8.3% |
| Buying costs, spread out | $177 | 3.5% of the price over 7 years |
| True cost of owning | $3,668 | Cash out, take out the equity part, then add the two lines above |
Virginia Beach numbers behind the verdict
- Typical home valueZillow's ZHVI, September 2026
- $424,785
- Typical rentZillow's ZORI, September 2026
- $2,098 a month
- Down payment20% keeps private mortgage insurance out, and the engine does not model it.
- 20%
- Mortgage rate, from Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey (FRED MORTGAGE30US)
- 7.24%
- Growth in home prices from the FHFA index of house prices, Virginia, 1995 to 2025
- 4.6% each year
- Rent growthCPI primary residence rent, yearly growth 2006 to 2026
- 3.5% each year
- Savings return60% S&P 500 with dividends plus 40% 10-year Treasuries, rebalanced every year, 1928 to 2025
- 8.3% each year
- Property tax, from Census ACS 2020-2024, Virginia Beach
- 0.8% of property value
- Home insurance, from Census ACS 2020-2024, Virginia Beach
- $122 a month
- MaintenanceFannie Mae, low end of the 1% to 4% range
- 1% of the value each year
- Buying costsFreddie Mac, middle of the 2% to 5% range
- 3.5% of the price
- Selling costsAgent commission and closing costs
- 6% of the price
What would flip the result in Virginia Beach?
Each line marks where the 7-year verdict for Virginia Beach flips, with everything else held as it is.
When renting wins
- Home prices rise more slowly than 4.8% a year (we use Virginia's long-run rate of 4.6%).
- The rate for mortgages remains higher than 6.88%.
- For a similar home, the monthly rent is less than $2,190, while the typical figure here is $2,098.
- Moving before year 9.
When buying wins
- Each year, home prices rise at a rate above 4.8%.
- You lock the mortgage rate below 6.88%; today's rate is 7.24%.
- The same home would cost more than $2,190 a month to rent.
- Your stay lasts 9 years or longer.
Virginia Beach compared with the other 812 cities
| Measure | Virginia Beach | Median city |
|---|---|---|
| Typical home value | $424,785 | $422,451 |
| Typical rent | $2,098 /mo | $1,837 /mo |
| Price-to-rent ratio | 16.9 (#498 of 813) | 18.5 |
| Home prices, last 10 years | 5% a year | 6.2% a year |
| Rents, last 5 years | 5.1% a year | 4% a year |
| Property tax | 0.80% | 0.87% |
| Households that rent | 35% | 42% |
Sources: Zillow ZHVI, ZORI, Census ACS 2020-2024.
Other Virginia cities
- Rent. Chesapeake, VA. Renting comes out ahead by $12k.
- Rent. Richmond, VA. Renting comes out ahead by $24k.
- Buy. Norfolk, VA. The win goes to buying by $6k.
- Toss-up verdict for Newport News, VA: buying is ahead by $2k.
- Rent. Alexandria, VA. The win goes to renting by $106k.
- Buy. Hampton, VA. The win goes to buying by $18k.
- Toss-up verdict for Suffolk, VA: renting is ahead by $1k.
- Rent. Roanoke, VA. The win goes to renting by $10k.
- Buy. Portsmouth, VA. Buying comes out ahead by $18k.
- Renting wins by $8k in Lynchburg, VA.
- Renting wins by $5k in Harrisonburg, VA.