Rent vs Buy in Queens: The Real Cost of Renting (and What Your Monthly Payment is Doing)

If you’re renting in Queens right now and thinking, “Buying would be amazing, but it just feels too expensive,” you’re not behind, you’re not failing, and you’re definitely not alone.

In this post, I’m breaking down rent vs buying in Queens in a simple, real-life way so you can see what your monthly payment is really doing over time.

Queens is expensive. NYC is expensive. And when you’re paying rent every month, it can feel like there’s no room to save, plan, or breathe — never mind buy a home.

Because the biggest mistake people make isn’t renting. The biggest mistake is renting for years and years without realizing what it’s costing them long-term — and what it’s preventing them from building.

If you’re renting right now and you’ve ever thought, “Buying would be nice… but I don’t know if it actually makes sense,” I want you to know you’re asking the right question. Because the real question isn’t just, “Is renting cheaper?”

The real question is what your monthly payment is doing for you over time.

Rent is simple. You pay it. You live there. And next month you do it again.

Owning is different. You pay it. You live there. But while you’re living your life, that payment can be doing something in the background that renting will never do.

It can be building equity.

The true cost of renting isn’t just the rent

Rent feels “clean” because it’s one number. You pay it, you live there, and you move on with your month.

But what most people don’t realize until years later is that rent doesn’t just cost you money. Renting also costs you progress.

Because after twelve months of renting, you’re not any closer to owning anything. After three years of renting, you’ve paid a small fortune for housing… and you’re still starting from scratch. After five years of renting, the rent has probably gone up, your savings goal may feel farther away, and you’re still in the same cycle.

And I’m not saying that as a judgment. Renting can absolutely be the right move depending on your lifestyle, your timeline, and your priorities.

What I am saying is this: if homeownership is one of your goals, renting comes with a tradeoff.

Rent is a monthly payment that ends every month. Owning is a monthly payment that can build something over time.

The biggest difference between renting and owning: equity

Equity is the difference between what your home is worth and what you owe on it.

When you rent, your monthly payment covers your housing for that month, and then it’s gone.

When you own, your monthly payment can actually help you build equity over time, because you’re paying down a loan on something you own.

Every month you make a mortgage payment, part of that payment goes toward the principal balance (the amount you actually owe). Over time, that balance goes down, which means your ownership in the home goes up.

This is one of the biggest mindset shifts for first-time buyers. You’re still paying for housing, but now your payment can build something for you in the background while you live your life.

Appreciation: the market can increase your home’s value over time

The second way homeowners build wealth is through appreciation.

Appreciation simply means your home becomes worth more over time because the market value increases.

And what I think is important to understand is that this isn’t just something that happens in a “perfect” market. Even with the volatile interest rate environment we’ve been in, home values in Queens have still appreciated by roughly 2.8% to 5% year over year over the last two years.

So let’s put real numbers on that.

If you bought a home for $600,000 and the value increased by 2.8%, that home is now worth about $616,800.

If it increased by 5%, that home is now worth about $630,000.

That’s $16,800 to $30,000 in market value growth from simply owning the property during that period of time.

And this is why homeownership builds wealth differently than renting. When you own, you’re not only paying for a place to live — you’re owning an asset that can grow in value while you live in it.

“Okay Amanda… but owning costs more than renting.”

Sometimes it does.

Owning comes with property taxes, insurance, repairs, closing costs, and “random homeowner stuff” that renters don’t have to think about.

But here’s what renters don’t always factor into the comparison.

Predictability.

One of the underrated perks of a fixed-rate mortgage is that it’s predictable. Your payment doesn’t suddenly jump at renewal time the way rent can. And research shows that kind of stability doesn’t just help your budget today — it can help you sleep better at night, stay focused at work, and plan for the future instead of constantly reacting to rising costs.

The savings people don’t talk about: taxes

This is the part that gets missed in almost every “rent vs buy” conversation.

People look at the monthly payment and assume owning is automatically way more expensive. And sometimes it is. But a lot of the time, once you account for the tax benefits of homeownership, the gap between renting and owning is not as dramatic as it looks at first glance.

I’m not a CPA and everyone’s tax situation is different, but this is still worth understanding because it can mean more money in your pocket each year.

When you own a home, there are certain expenses you may be able to deduct on your taxes if you itemize deductions. And the reason that matters is because deductions reduce your taxable income, which can reduce the amount you owe in taxes (AKA bigger returns come March).

One of the biggest deductions for homeowners is something called the SALT deduction. SALT stands for State and Local Taxes, which includes things like property taxes. The SALT deduction cap is currently $40,000, which can make a meaningful difference for homeowners.

Another one is mortgage interest. You’ll see a lot of headlines about interest rates, but what people don’t always realize is that mortgage interest can be deductible when you itemize.

And if you put less than 20% down and pay mortgage insurance, that can matter too. PMI (private mortgage insurance) or MIP (mortgage insurance premium on certain loan types) is basically a monthly insurance payment that protects the lender when you’re making a low down payment — and this can be deductible too when you itemize.

Again, this doesn’t mean you should buy a home just for tax write-offs. That’s not the point.

The point is that your homeownership costs don’t exist in a vacuum. After tax savings, owning may not be much more expensive than renting — and in some cases, it can be closer than people expect.

Before you compare the true cost of renting vs buying, it’s a really good idea to talk to your CPA and look at your specific situation so you’re not comparing apples to oranges. And if you need a referral, email me at amanda@nestrealestatequeens.com and I’ll connect you with someone.

“But my down payment could make more money in the market…”

This is a really smart question, and I’m glad when buyers think this way.

Because yes — money invested in the market can absolutely grow.

Historically, the S&P 500 has averaged about 10.56% per year over the long term, or roughly 6.69% after inflation. So if you left $10,000 invested, you could reasonably expect that money to grow over time, even with normal ups and downs along the way.

But here’s the part that often gets missed.

When you use that same $10,000 as part of a down payment, you’re not just investing $10,000 — you’re gaining exposure to the growth of the entire property.

And that changes the math.

Using the same example as above, if you buy a $600,000 home and the market value increases by 2.8% to 5%, that’s about $16,800 to $30,000 in added value in a year. Not because your down payment magically grew, but because you owned an appreciating asset.

This is the power of leverage, and it’s one of the main reasons homeownership builds wealth differently than renting.

That doesn’t mean buying is always the right move. And it definitely doesn’t mean draining every dollar you have to buy a home.

What it does mean is that when you buy, your money isn’t just sitting on the sidelines. It’s working inside an asset that can grow while you live in it.

That’s a very different equation than rent — and it’s why homeownership can build wealth in a way renting can’t.

How long do you need to own before buying starts to pay off?

One of the most common things I hear is, “I don’t know if buying is even worth it if I’m not going to stay for 30 years.”

And I totally understand why people think that… but it’s not true.

You don’t need to stay in a home for 30 years for homeownership to make financial sense. You just need to stay long enough for the numbers to work in your favor.

For example, if you’re buying in Queens, the tipping point can be around 2.3 years (Forest Hills and Astoria were used as examples — check your neighborhood here). That means you may only need to own the property for about that long before buying starts to outperform renting financially, depending on the home size and area.

Strategies that can make buying feel more affordable

And if you’re reading this thinking, “Okay… I get the wealth part, but the monthly payment still feels heavy,” you’re not wrong.

This is where strategy matters. One option is buying in a way that brings in extra income or splits the cost, so you’re not carrying the full payment alone. I explain exactly how that can work here: Buying a Home in Queens? Here’s How House Hacking Could Be Cheaper Than Renting.

Another option is leveraging down payment assistance, which can reduce how much cash you need out of pocket to get started. What most people don’t realize is that about 80% of first-time buyers qualify for down payment assistance programs, but only around 13% actually use them. If you want to see what that could look like in NYC, read this next: Free Money for Your Next Home: Snag $20K (Even If You’ve Bought Before).

The truth is renting isn’t “bad,” but it doesn’t build equity. Owning isn’t always easy, but it can build wealth over time through equity, appreciation and tax savings. If your goal is to stop renting and start building wealth, the next step isn’t scrolling listings — it’s getting clear on your numbers, timeline, and plan. If you want help mapping that out, email me at amanda@nestrealestatequeens.com and I’ll help you take the next best step.