ATTOM Data Solutions’ 2020 Rental Affordability Report just released reveals the split between different-sized markets, with home ownership more affordable mainly in lightly populated counties and renting more affordable in more populous suburban or urban areas.
According to the analysis, owning a median-priced, three-bedroom home is more affordable than renting a three-bedroom property in 455, or 53 percent, of the 855 U.S. counties analyzed for the report.
However, among the 136 counties analyzed in the report with a population of at least 500,000 or more, renting is more affordable than buying a home in 94, or 69 percent. Particularly in the more populous counties, those with at least 1 million or more people, renting remains the more affordable option in 36 of the 43 counties, or 84 percent.
The report cited recently released fair market rent data for 2020 from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, wage data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics along with public record sales deed data from ATTOM Data Solutions in 855 U.S. counties with sufficient home sales data.
