Homeowners in Columbia County save between $200 and $600 a month compared to renters, according to a recent study by the Business Journals using data from Zillow. The study compared median rent prices with monthly mortgage payments for zip-codes across the country using median home values and prevailing interest rates.
Only ten municipalities in Columbia County were included in the study, shown in the table below. Among them, Stuyvesant had the largest differential between the monthly cost of rent and mortgage payments at $628. All ten had a lower monthly cost of ownership, which is standard throughout the country except for localities with extremely high home values, such as those on waterfronts. Columbia County’s median home value is $224,000 according to the U.S. Census Bureau’s American Community Survey data.
| Town/City | Rent | Mortgage | Difference |
| Stuyvesant | $1,530 | $902 | $628 |
| Hudson | $1,474 | $928 | $546 |
| Claverack | $1,532 | $1,037 | $495 |
| Ghent | $1,687 | $1,272 | $415 |
| Copake | $1,516 | $1,124 | $392 |
| Chatham | $1,494 | $1,105 | $389 |
| Kinderhook | $1,620 | $1,240 | $380 |
| Gallatin | $1,532 | $1,158 | $374 |
| Taghkanic | $1,552 | $1,232 | $320 |
| Hillsdale | $1,713 | $1,499 | $214 |
The Albany Business Review recently published an article showing the figures for other municipalities throughout the Capital Region, which can be viewed here.