Exclusive | NYC renters can save $31K per year instead of owning as the gap widens nationwide

For Americans dreaming of ditching their landlord and buying a home, the price of ownership is increasingly difficult to swallow.Renting a typical home in the US was $1,066 a month cheaper than buying one in August — a gap that has widened as homeownership costs rise far faster than rents, according to a new Zillow analysis.The typical US asking rent stood at $1,948 a month, compared with $3,014 for a new homeowner’s monthly mortgage payment, taxes and insurance.That leaves renters with a whopping $12,792 annual advantage over buyers.And the divide is growing.Over just the past six months, the typical monthly cost for a new buyer has jumped $140, while rent increased by just $32 — meaning ownership costs rose more than four times as much in dollar terms.Renting is now cheaper than buying in every one of the 50 largest US metro areas, according to Zillow.The difference is particularly eye-popping in pricey coastal cities.In San Jose, Calif., the typical rent was $3,815 in August, while a new buyer faced an estimated monthly payment of $11,698 — an extraordinary $7,883-a-month difference, or $94,596 over a year.San Francisco renters faced a $3,409 monthly bill compared with $8,822 for buyers, leaving them $5,413 ahead each month.In Los Angeles, the gap was $4,441 a month — $2,941 to rent versus $7,382 to buy — while San Diego renters paid $2,994 compared with a $7,229 estimated monthly cost for buyers, a difference of $4,235.Seattle also posted a sizable $3,511 monthly gap, with typical rents of $2,278 compared with $5,789 for a new homeowner.New Yorkers, meanwhile, aren’t exactly getting a bargain by renting — but buying is considerably more expensive.Typical New York metro rent hit $3,615 in August, up 4.2% from a year earlier.

A new homeowner would face an estimated $6,244 monthly payment, leaving a $2,629 gap between renting and buying — equivalent to $31,548 a year.New York was also the country’s least affordable major rental market relative ...