Rent vs buy in Yonkers, NY
A typical rent of $2,765 /mo and a typical home price of $701,827 are found in Yonkers, New York.
Over 7 years, renting wins by $125k
Yonkers's typical home value and rent, with today's mortgage rate and 20% down. No break-even within 30 years.
Opinion, clearly marked, with the math shown. These are estimates, not quotes. Change one number and the stamp changes.
- Renting leads by
- $125k after 7 years
- Break-even point
- 30 years or more owning never catches up sooner
- What owning really costs
- $6,627 a month year 1, against $2,765 rent
Change my numbers
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Is it cheaper to rent or buy in Yonkers?
Count what you get back when you sell, and renting comes out $124,637 cheaper over 7 years. Every year shown puts renting's net cost below owning's, and owning stays behind for all 30 years.
Renting. Owning. So far, the net cost by year.
Average rent compared with the mortgage payment in Yonkers
Rent and the mortgage payment alone don't tell you everything. Here's the full list of monthly costs for year 1, based on Yonkers's typical price.
| Each month, year 1 | Amount | What it is |
|---|---|---|
| Rent | $2,765 | All of it, every month |
| Mortgage payment | $3,826 | $3,373 of it is interest in year 1 |
| Property tax | $1,129 | 1.93% of the value a year |
| Insurance | $108 | Census median for the city |
| Upkeep | $585 | 1% of the value a year |
| Owning, cash out | $5,648 | $454 of it builds equity |
| Lost return on the down payment | $1,141 | What the cash would earn yearly at 8.3% |
| Buying costs, spread out | $292 | 3.5% of the price over 7 years |
| True cost of owning | $6,627 | Cash out, minus the equity portion, plus the two lines above |
The figures behind the Yonkers verdict
- Typical home value, from Zillow ZHVI, September 2026
- $701,827
- Typical rent, from Zillow ZORI, September 2026
- $2,765 a month
- Down payment: 20% means no private mortgage insurance, and the engine doesn't model that.
- 20%
- Mortgage rate: Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey (FRED MORTGAGE30US)
- 7.24%
- Growth in home pricesFHFA house price index for New York, 1995 to 2025
- 4.8% each year
- Rent growth: CPI primary residence rent, yearly growth 2006 to 2026
- 3.5% each year
- Savings return: 60% S&P 500 including dividends plus 40% 10-year Treasuries, rebalanced each year, 1928 to 2025
- Each year: 8.3%
- Tax on the property: Census ACS 2020-2024, Yonkers
- of value: 1.93%
- Home insurance: Census ACS 2020-2024, Yonkers
- per month, $108
- MaintenanceFannie Mae, bottom of 1% to 4%
- each year, 1% of value
- Buying costsFreddie Mac, midpoint of 2% to 5%
- of price: 3.5%
- Selling costsAgent commission and closing costs
- of price: 6%
What would flip the Yonkers verdict?
Each line is the tipping point for the 7-year verdict in Yonkers, and everything else stays as it is.
When renting wins
- Home prices grow at under 6.9% a year (our figure is 4.8%, New York's rate over the long run).
- The mortgage rate holds above 4.05%.
- A home like this has a monthly rent of less than $4,100 (typical here: $2,765).
- Any move in the next 30 years means owning never catches up at these numbers.
When buying wins
- Home prices grow at more than 6.9% a year.
- You lock in a mortgage rate under 4.05% (today's is 7.24%).
- You'd pay more than $4,100 a month to rent that home.
Yonkers compared with the other 812 cities
| Measure | Yonkers | Median city |
|---|---|---|
| Typical home value | $701,827 | $422,451 |
| Typical rent | $2,765 /mo | $1,837 /mo |
| Price-to-rent ratio | 21.2 (#284 of 813) | 18.5 |
| Home prices, last 10 years | 5.4% a year | 6.2% a year |
| Rents, last 5 years | 5.9% a year | 4% a year |
| Property tax | 1.93% | 0.87% |
| Households that rent | 54% | 42% |
Sources used: Zillow ZHVI and ZORI, Census ACS 2020-2024.
Other New York cities
- Too close to call. New York City, NY. Buying edges out renting by $5k.
- Buy. Buffalo, NY. Buying comes out ahead by $15k.
- Rent. Rochester, NY. Renting comes out ahead by $4k.
- Buy. Syracuse, NY. Owning comes out $14k ahead.
- Rent. Albany, NY. Renting is ahead by $34k.
- Rent. New Rochelle, NY. Renting comes out ahead by $197k.
- Rent. Mount Vernon, NY. Renting comes out ahead by $87k.
- Rent. Schenectady, NY. Renting is ahead by $67k.
- Buy. Utica, NY. Buying is ahead by $8k.
- Rent. White Plains, NY. Renting comes out ahead by $106k.
- Rent. Hempstead, NY. Renting comes out ahead by $78k.
- Troy, NY: renting. Renting comes out ahead by $38k.