BAM Key Details:
- Realtor.com’s July 2026 Rent Report puts the national median asking rent at $1,695, down 1.4% year over year and marking the 36th straight month of decline.
- An $858 monthly premium separates the cost of buying a starter home from renting one across the 50 largest US metros, down from $923 a year ago.
- Seven markets, including Oklahoma City, Seattle and Nashville, are seeing listing prices fall faster than rents, with Orlando buyers $19 a month from breaking even.
The median asking rent across the 50 largest U.S. metros fell to $1,695 in July, marking the 36th straight month of annual rent declines.
According to Realtor.com’s July rental report, renting a starter home costs less than buying one in every metro on that list.
Yet buying costs are dropping at the same time. A small group of markets is starting to move toward buyers, and agents working in those markets need a read on how long the rent advantage might hold.
Read on for the national rent numbers, the size of the cost difference between renting and buying (nationwide), the metros where renting nets the biggest savings, and the seven markets where buying is catching up.
Rent Keeps Falling, Across Every Unit Size
The $1,695 national median covers 0 to 2 bedroom rentals, and it’s down $24 from a year ago, a 1.4% drop.
Rent across all unit sizes sits $225 above July 2019 levels, a 15.3% increase over seven years. It sits $69 below its August 2022 peak, a 3.9% drop from that high.
Break it down by unit size and the pattern holds across the board:
- Studio: $1,435, down 1.4% year over year, 35 straight months of decline, 3.4% below peak, up 13.7% from seven years ago
- One-bedroom: $1,581, down 1.3% year over year, 38 straight months of decline, 4.8% below peak, up 14.6% from seven years ago
- Two-bedroom: $1,893, down 1.4% year over year, 38 straight months of decline, 3.8% below peak, up 17.5% from seven years ago
Every unit size sits above pre-pandemic levels after three straight years of decline.
The Size of the Rent-vs-Buy Gap Nationally
The national monthly cost of buying a starter home was $2,553 in July. This runs $858 more than the median rent, a 50.6% premium.
A year earlier, the premium was $923, or 53.7% higher. It fell by $65 over the past twelve months.
Rent fell $24 over that stretch. The buy cost fell $89, split between two forces:
- a $57 drop from lower typical listing prices
- a $33 drop tied to a lower mortgage rate
The 30-year fixed rate dropped from 6.72% in July 2025 to 6.54% this July.
Dr. Jiayi Xu, an economist at Realtor.com, framed the trend as a reason for ready buyers to stay in the market:
“Renters have gained meaningful financial breathing room over the last three years, and that advantage is still real in many major metros. But the savings gap is no longer moving in just one direction. Starter-home prices are falling faster than rents in many places, giving households who are ready to buy a stronger reason to stay engaged with the market.”
Where the Rent Advantage Is Biggest
Some metros show a bigger difference between renting and buying than the national average. Austin leads the country.
- Austin: $1,378 to rent, $3,295 to buy, a $1,917 difference, 139.1% higher to buy
- Seattle: $1,890 to rent, $3,851 to buy, a $1,961 difference, 103.8% higher to buy
- Los Angeles: $2,787 to rent, $4,836 to buy, a $2,049 difference, 73.5% higher to buy
- Dallas-Fort Worth: $1,463 to rent, $2,657 to buy, an 81.6% difference
- Columbus, Ohio: $1,181 to rent, $2,111 to buy, a 78.7% difference
These five metros make the strongest case for renting on the numbers alone.
Seven Markets Where the Gap Is Starting to Close
Renting continues to cost less than buying across all 50 metros. Seven markets deserve a second look from agents working with buyer clients, because starter-home listing prices are falling faster than rents and wage growth is keeping pace with or beating the 3.8% national rate:
- Oklahoma City, OK: $915 rent, down 1.5% year over year; listing prices down 9.0% year over year; wages up 4.1% year over year; buying costs $628 more per month, a 68.6% premium
- Orlando, FL: $1,682 rent, down 1.6% year over year; listing prices down 7.7% year over year; wages up 3.8% year over year; buying costs $19 more per month, a 1.1% premium
- Seattle, WA: $1,890 rent, down 1.0% year over year; listing prices down 5.9% year over year; wages up 4.0% year over year; buying costs $1,961 more per month, a 103.8% premium
- Miami, FL: $2,279 rent, down 1.3% year over year; listing prices down 5.0% year over year; wages up 5.7% year over year; buying costs $692 more per month, a 30.4% premium
- Tampa, FL: $1,635 rent, down 4.9% year over year; listing prices down 7.1% year over year; wages up 4.8% year over year; buying costs $359 more per month, a 22.0% premium
- Las Vegas, NV: $1,457 rent, down 1.8% year over year; listing prices down 3.4% year over year; wages up 4.4% year over year; buying costs $674 more per month, a 46.3% premium
- Nashville, TN: $1,488 rent, down 3.9% year over year; listing prices down 5.4% year over year; wages up 3.9% year over year; buying costs $1,158 more per month, a 77.8% premium
Orlando sits nearest to a breakeven point on this list. Oklahoma City, Seattle, and Nashville combine some of the largest rent savings with some of the biggest improvements in purchase conditions.
Dr. Xu summed up what this means for today’s renters:
“Improving buying conditions do not make the decision to purchase automatic, especially when renting is still cheaper. These conditions do give renters more flexibility and confidence when making that decision. Households can continue to save while renting, or, if they are ready to buy, pursue a market where home prices, rents and earnings are increasingly working in their favor.”
