Lake Forest Among State's Best Cities for Renters

It’s more than 18 times cheaper to rent a home in Lake Forest than it is to buy, according to a new report by the consumer finance site NerdWallet.

The site compiled a list of the best cities to rent, not buy in Southern California, and Lake Forest came in at number 20. Many of you have already figured that out. A full 30% of residents in Lake Forest rent rather than own their residences, according to the report.

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A few notable takeaways From NerdWallet:

• Vacancy rates are moderate. Half of the cities in the top 10 had rates at or above 4.9%, which is 0.4% above the state average.

• Median rent isn’t affordable. Only one city in the top 10, Loma Linda, had a median rent that is less than 30% of residents’ median income, which NerdWallet recommends as a healthy goal for housing costs. However, only three cities in the top 20 had median rents above 40%.

• Higher price-to-rent ratios helped. The average price-to-rent ratio of the top 20 cities is 19 — which means the median home price is 19 times the cost of renting a similar-size home. A ratio at or over 15 is an indicator of whether it’s better to rent than to buy.

Check out the study with our analysis below, which also includes our methodology. Please let me know if you have any questions and would like to speak further with Kamran Rosen, the analyst behind the study. Thank you!

Study Link: Best Cities for Renters in Southern California