The best big cities to buy a home instead of rent - Business Insider

The 10 best big cities in the US to buy a home instead of rent

• Jan. 18, 2016, 2:00 PM


• 241,192

If you're planning to stay in St. Louis, Missouri for more than three years, it's worth it to buy. Shutterstock

In a lot of big cities, buying a home only makes financial sense if you're staying put for a while. InВ New York City, where the housing market is notoriously competitive, it may not be worth your money to buy a home unless you live there for 18 years.

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That's according to a recent SmartAsset report, which calculated the "breakeven point" — the point at which the total costs of renting become greater than the total costs of buying — for 29 major cities.

Everyone's situation is different, and there is no universal answer to the rent versus buy question.В In this analysis, the cities with the shortest time to break even areВ the best places to buy.

Here, we rounded up the 10 cities with the shortest breakeven points. We also included the average monthly mortgage payment, monthly rent, and home price, from SmartAsset's report:

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Tampa, Florida

Average monthly rent: $1,349

Average monthly mortgage payment: $776

Average home price: $191,536

Charlotte, North Carolina

Average monthly rent: $1,168

Average monthly mortgage payment: $757

Average home price: $186,693

Atlanta, Georgia

Average monthly rent: $1,263

Average monthly mortgage payment: $823

Average home price: $202,969

Miami, Florida

Average monthly rent: $1,722

Average monthly mortgage payment: $1,013

Average home price: $249,952

Baltimore, Maryland

Average monthly rent: $1,599

Average monthly mortgage payment: $995

Average home price: $245,453

Austin, Texas

Average monthly rent: $1,454

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Average monthly mortgage payment: $742

Average home price: $183,134

St. Louis, Missouri

Average monthly rent: $1,131

Average monthly mortgage payment: $667

Average home price: $164,493

Dallas, Texas

Average monthly rent: $1,302

Average monthly mortgage payment: $594

Average home price: $146,616

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

Average monthly rent: $1,414

Average monthly mortgage payment: $640

Average home price: $157,802

Detroit, Michigan

Average monthly rent: $1,206

Average monthly mortgage payment: $432

Average home price: $106,456

SEE ALSO: How long you have to live in 15 major US cities to make buying a home worth your money

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The 10 best big cities in the US to buy a home instead of rent

In a lot of big cities, buying a home only.

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