Research / Rent vs. buy / Tennessee / Nashville

Rent or buy in Nashville?
Renting is $1,228 a month cheaper.

Renting the typical home in Nashville costs $1,228 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 October 1, 2026 · Zillow data for August 2026 · 7.28% mortgage rate (Freddie Mac, October 1, 2026) · Rank 172 of 340 (1 = owning closest to renting) · Part of our 2026 rent vs. buy study

Monthly cost to own$3,062typical home, 20% down
Typical monthly rent$1,834Zillow, August 2026
Buying breaks even30+ years3.5% price growth
Cash needed to buy$98,840$429,741 home · 20% down + 3% closing
Income needed to own$122,474vs. $73,360 to rent · 30% rule

Where the monthly money goes.

The first-month cost of owning the typical Nashville home, split into its parts, against the typical rent. About $267 of the first mortgage payment is principal, which you keep as equity.

The median household income in Nashville is $77,371 (Census ACS 2020–2024). Owning the typical home would take 47% 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 Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin, TN HUD Metro FMR Area area is $2,309 a month, still $753 below the cost of owning.

  • Mortgage principal & interest $2,352
  • Property tax $214
  • Home insurance $137
  • Maintenance $358

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 Nashville, by years in the home
StayResult
3 yearsRenting ahead by $49,998
5 yearsRenting ahead by $57,723
7 yearsRenting ahead by $65,521
10 yearsRenting ahead by $77,178
15 yearsRenting ahead by $95,570
20 yearsRenting ahead by $110,420
30 yearsRenting ahead by $111,116

Rent or buy elsewhere in Tennessee.

Other large Tennessee cities in the study.

All cities
MemphisOwning $46/mo cheaperKnoxvilleRenting $960/mo cheaperChattanoogaRenting $850/mo cheaperClarksvilleRenting $946/mo cheaperMurfreesboroRenting $1,355/mo cheaper

More on Nashville

See the full Nashville 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 Nashville. The cost of owning includes principal and interest at 7.28% with 20% down, property tax at the city's 0.60% effective rate (Census ACS), the Tennessee 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.