But, these days, even some of the country’s highest earners are choosing to rent houses over buying them. RentCafe analyzed U.S. Census Bureau survey data and found that the number of renter households that earned $1 million or more grew 229% between 2020 and 2024. Millionaire homeowners grew, too, but not quite as much.
It’s worth noting, however, that RentCafe counted yearly income, and only about 18,400 renter households hit the million-dollar mark — many of which only earned $1 million or more annually when the income of more than one household member was combined. It’s also worth noting that the numbers aren’t adjusted for inflation.
Even though the analysis looks at a small group of millionaire households, the growth in millionaires renting instead of buying begs the question: Should anyone buy a home at today’s high prices and mortgage rates, or keep renting?
Why people who could buy anything are renting
A year ago, the average 30-year fixed mortgage rate was 6.19%, according to Freddie Mac. In Freddie Mac’s Oct. 22 survey, it stood at 7.32%, and that means a higher monthly payment for someone taking out the same-sized loan.
Home prices haven’t come down to even make up for it, either. The typical home sold in September cost more than it did a year earlier, and that’s been true every month for 39 months in a row, according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR).
Some buyers also can’t buy because of higher mortgage rates.
“Further increases in mortgage rates in recent weeks mean fewer buyers can qualify to purchase a home,” NAR Chief Economist Lawrence Yun stated in the report.
Meanwhile, renting got a little bit cheaper than buying for smaller apartments. When Realtor.com ran the numbers in July, it cost $858 a month more to buy a starter home in the 50 biggest metros compared to renting a similar sized place. And rates were even lower than they are today.
A household earning $1 million a year could cover that $858 without much thought. But many of them still choose to rent because they’d rather keep their money in the stock market, where they can get to it, than tie it up in a house, according to RentCafe’s report. They can also easily move for a new job or to another city without having to sell their home first.
Zillow Senior Economist Kara Ng has said the company is “seeing the rise of the deliberate renter,” referring to someone who puts the difference between a mortgage payment and rent toward building wealth.
