To rent or to buy in San Diego? Trulia weighs in.
Monday, January 24, 2011 at 8:42 a.m.
Does it make more sense to lease or purchase a home in San Diego?
It depends on the situation, said real-estate data provider Trulia in its most recent Rent vs. Buy Index, a quarterly comparison of renting and buying a two-bedroom home in the country's 50 largest cities.
Trulia on Monday reported that it's cheaper to buy than to rent in nearly three-quarters of the 50 largest cities in the country, with Miami, Las Vegas and Arlington, Texas, leading the list. New York, Seattle and Kansas City, Mo., topped the list of cities where renting makes more sense.
Where did San Diego land?
A little past the middle, at No. 32. Trulia's assessment of the city: "Renting is less expensive, but buying might be better." (Click here for Trulia's interactive map.)
Trulia estimated the median rent for a two-bedroom apartment in San Diego ranges from $1,500 to $2,000 whereas the median home price is $200,000 to $300,000.
The San Francisco-based company assigns each city a price-to-rent ratio, calculated by multiplying an area's median rent by 12 (for 12 months) and dividing that amount into the median sale price for a home.
San Diego's ratio was 15, right at the cut-off point at which owning is cheaper than renting.
The breakdown:
--Price-to-Rent Ratio of 1-15: Owning a home is much less expensive than renting in this city.
--Price-to-Rent Ratio of 16-20: The total costs of homeownership in this city are greater than the costs of renting, but it might still make financial sense to buy depending on the situation.
--Price-to-Rent Ratio of 21+: Renting in this city is much less expensive than owning a home.
Lily Leung: (619)293-1719; lily.leung@uniontrib.com; Twitter @LilyShumLeung
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