People Spend More Income on Rent Than on Mortgages

Renters in nearly all of the nation’s 35 largest markets, spend a larger share of income on rent now than in the mid-1980s through to the year 2000, costing the average U.S. renter almost $2,000 more annually than during that period.

Low mortgage interest rates have helped keep the monthly costs of owning a home down, and as Zillow's research concludes, people are spending about $3,300 less per year on the typical mortgage, showing that homeownership is cheaper than renting in most of the nation's top housing markets.

In San Jose, Calif., renters pay $13,525 more in rent this year, and spend 38.4 percent of their incomes on rent, compared to 26 percent historically. In Dallas, the $5,298 annual difference would be enough to save a 20 percent down payment for a typical home there in eight years.

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