Research / Rent vs. buy / Alabama / Montgomery

Rent or buy in Montgomery?
Owning is $185 a month cheaper.

Owning the typical home in Montgomery costs $185 less a month than renting it. Counting equity, price growth and what a renter could earn by investing the difference, buying comes out ahead in year 3.

Updated September 26, 2026 · Zillow data for August 2026 · 7.03% mortgage rate (Freddie Mac, September 24, 2026) · Rank 6 of 340 (1 = owning closest to renting) · Part of our 2026 rent vs. buy study

Monthly cost to own$1,153typical home, 20% down
Typical monthly rent$1,338Zillow, August 2026
Buying breaks evenYear 33.5% price growth
Cash needed to buy$35,152$152,837 home · 20% down + 3% closing
Income needed to own$46,108vs. $53,520 to rent · 30% rule

Where the monthly money goes.

The first-month cost of owning the typical Montgomery home, split into its parts, against the typical rent. About $100 of the first mortgage payment is principal, which you keep as equity.

The median household income in Montgomery is $56,811 (Census ACS 2020–2024). Owning the typical home would take 24% of it; renting would take 28%.

As a check with a larger rental, HUD's FY2027 Fair Market Rent for a three-bedroom home in the Montgomery, AL MSA area is $1,476 a month, $323 above the cost of owning.

  • Mortgage principal & interest $816
  • Property tax $51
  • Home insurance $159
  • Maintenance $127

How long you would need to stay.

Net worth of a buyer compared with a renter who invests the down payment, closing costs and any monthly savings at 6% a year. Home values and rents grow 3.5% a year; selling costs 6%.

Change the assumptions

Buying vs. renting in Montgomery, by years in the home
StayResult
3 yearsBuying ahead by $7,624
5 yearsBuying ahead by $25,870
7 yearsBuying ahead by $47,898
10 yearsBuying ahead by $89,329
15 yearsBuying ahead by $186,776
20 yearsBuying ahead by $332,249
30 yearsBuying ahead by $851,885

Rent or buy elsewhere in Alabama.

Other large Alabama cities in the study.

All cities
HuntsvilleRenting $731/mo cheaperMobileRenting $185/mo cheaperBirminghamOwning $247/mo cheaperTuscaloosaRenting $324/mo cheaper

More on Montgomery

See the full Montgomery rental market profile with Census medians, or check how a typical rental performs for an investor in our cash-flow ranking.

How we calculated this

Price is the Zillow Home Value Index and rent the Zillow Observed Rent Index for Montgomery. The cost of owning includes principal and interest at 7.03% with 20% down, property tax at the city's 0.40% effective rate (Census ACS), the Alabama average homeowners premium (NAIC 2023) and 1% yearly maintenance. It leaves out income-tax effects, HOA dues and utilities. The typical rental may be smaller than the typical home for sale. Full methodology. This is a citywide estimate, not advice about a specific home.