Rent vs buy in Yuba City, CA
In Yuba City, California, the typical rent is $1,993 /mo and the typical home value is $435,824.
It's a toss-up, with the two options $2,911 apart over 7 years
Today's mortgage rate and a 20% down payment, applied to Yuba City's typical home value and rent. The break-even lands in year 7.
Clearly labeled opinion with the math shown. These are estimates, not quotes. Adjust one number and the stamp updates.
- Gap
- $3k after 7 years
- Break-even point
- year 7 when owning catches up
- Actual cost of owning
- $3,748 /mo year 1, against $1,993 rent
Change my numbers
The stamp uses the typical rent and home value for Yuba City's market. The result can flip depending on your rent, your price and your years.
Do your numbers differ from the city's?
Enter your own rent, price and down payment. It updates with those figures.
Is renting or buying cheaper in Yuba City?
Small changes decide the result, since over 7 years the two paths finish within $2,911 of each other. In year 7, owning's net cost falls below renting's and remains lower.
Rent. Ownership. Net cost to date, by year.
In Yuba City: average rent compared with the mortgage payment
Year 1 shows more than rent and a mortgage payment, so here are all the monthly costs at Yuba City's typical price.
| Each month, year 1 | Amount | What it is |
|---|---|---|
| Rent | $1,993 | All of it, every month |
| Mortgage payment | $2,376 | $2,094 of it is interest in year 1 |
| Property tax | $291 | 0.8% of the value a year |
| Insurance | $110 | Census median for the city |
| Upkeep | $363 | 1% of the value a year |
| Owning, cash out | $3,140 | $282 of it builds equity |
| Lost return on the down payment | $708 | Annual earnings on the cash at 8.3% |
| Buying costs, spread out | $182 | 3.5% of the price over 7 years |
| True cost of owning | $3,748 | Cash out minus the equity portion, plus the two amounts above |
The figures behind Yuba City's verdict
- Typical home value: Zillow ZHVI, September 2026
- $435,824
- Typical rent: Zillow ZORI, September 2026
- $1,993 /mo
- Down payment: 20% skips private mortgage insurance, which the engine doesn't model
- 20%
- Mortgage rate, from Freddie Mac Primary Mortgage Market Survey (FRED MORTGAGE30US)
- 7.24%
- Home value growthFHFA house price index for California, 1995 through 2025
- Each year, 5.3%
- Rent growthCPI rent of primary residence, with yearly growth 2006 to 2026
- Each year, 3.5%
- Savings return60% in the S&P 500 with dividends, 40% in 10-year Treasuries, rebalanced each year, 1928 to 2025
- 8.3% each year
- Property tax, from the Census ACS 2020-2024, Yuba City
- 0.8% of the value
- Home insurance, from the Census ACS 2020-2024, Yuba City
- $110 monthly
- MaintenanceFannie Mae, the low end of the 1% to 4% range
- Each year, 1% of value
- Buying costsFreddie Mac, middle of the 2% to 5% range
- 3.5% of the price
- Selling costsAgent commission and closing costs
- 6% based on the price.
What would flip the result in Yuba City?
Each line shows where the 7-year result in Yuba City changes, while all other figures remain the same.
Renting is the better choice when
- Home prices rise by less than 5.2% a year, and the rate we apply is 5.3%, California's rate over the long run.
- The mortgage rate holds above 7.36%.
- A similar home rents for under $1,960 a month (the typical rate here is $1,993).
- You move earlier than year 7.
When buying wins
- Home prices rise by more than 5.2% a year.
- You lock in a rate below 7.36% (today's rate is 7.24%).
- For that same home, rent would run over $1,960 a month.
- You remain 7 years or longer.
Yuba City compared with the other 812 cities
| Measure | Yuba City | Median city |
|---|---|---|
| Typical home value | $435,824 | $422,451 |
| Typical rent | $1,993 /mo | $1,837 /mo |
| Price-to-rent ratio | 18.2 (#423 of 813) | 18.5 |
| Home prices, last 10 years | 5.9% a year | 6.2% a year |
| Property tax | 0.80% | 0.87% |
| Households that rent | 43% | 42% |
Data from: Zillow ZHVI and ZORI, Census ACS 2020-2024.
Other California cities
- Rent. Los Angeles, CA. Renting comes out ahead by $111k.
- Rent. San Diego, CA. Renting comes out ahead by $108k.
- Rent. San Jose, CA. Renting comes out ahead by $210k.
- Rent. San Francisco, CA. Renting comes out ahead by $128k.
- Buy. Fresno, CA. Buying comes out ahead by $22k.
- Toss-up. Sacramento, CA. Renting leads by $3k in a toss-up.
- Rent. Long Beach, CA. Renting comes out ahead by $111k.
- Rent. Oakland, CA. Renting leads by $44k.
- Buy. Bakersfield, CA. Buying has the edge by $11k.
- Rent. Anaheim, CA. Renting leads by $115k.
- Buy. Stockton, CA. Buying leads by $16k.
- Rent. Riverside, CA. Renting is ahead by $27k.