Research / Rent vs. buy / California / Chico

Rent or buy in Chico?
Renting is $1,738 a month cheaper.

Renting the typical home in Chico costs $1,738 less a month than owning it. Even counting equity and price growth, buying does not come out ahead of renting and investing the difference within 30 years under our baseline assumptions.

Updated September 26, 2026 · Zillow data for August 2026 · 7.03% mortgage rate (Freddie Mac, September 24, 2026) · Rank 288 of 340 (1 = owning closest to renting) · Part of our 2026 rent vs. buy study

Monthly cost to own$3,282typical home, 20% down
Typical monthly rent$1,544Zillow, August 2026
Buying breaks even30+ years3.5% price growth
Cash needed to buy$105,993$460,839 home · 20% down + 3% closing
Income needed to own$131,284vs. $61,760 to rent · 30% rule

Where the monthly money goes.

The first-month cost of owning the typical Chico home, split into its parts, against the typical rent. About $300 of the first mortgage payment is principal, which you keep as equity.

The median household income in Chico is $66,977 (Census ACS 2020–2024). Owning the typical home would take 59% 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 Chico, CA MSA area is $2,090 a month, still $1,192 below the cost of owning.

  • Mortgage principal & interest $2,460
  • Property tax $300
  • Home insurance $138
  • Maintenance $384

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 Chico, by years in the home
StayResult
3 yearsRenting ahead by $70,307
5 yearsRenting ahead by $92,649
7 yearsRenting ahead by $117,838
10 yearsRenting ahead by $161,706
15 yearsRenting ahead by $254,397
20 yearsRenting ahead by $378,187
30 yearsRenting ahead by $760,432

Rent or buy elsewhere in California.

Other large California cities in the study.

All cities
Los AngelesRenting $3,606/mo cheaperSan DiegoRenting $3,720/mo cheaperSan JoseRenting $5,851/mo cheaperSan FranciscoRenting $5,089/mo cheaperFresnoRenting $833/mo cheaperSacramentoRenting $1,306/mo cheaperLong BeachRenting $3,421/mo cheaperOaklandRenting $2,321/mo cheaper

More on Chico

See the full Chico 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 Chico. The cost of owning includes principal and interest at 7.03% with 20% down, property tax at the city's 0.78% effective rate (Census ACS), the California 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.