FOR BREAKING NEWS VISIT WWW.QNS.COM AUGUST 9, 2018 • THE QUEENS COURIER 51
THE QUEENS
AUGUST 2018
Image via Pixabay
Queens homeowners save more money than renters
BY RYAN KELLEY
rkelley@qns.com
Twitter @R_Kelley6
People who own a home in Queens
have a better chance to save money each
month than the average renter in the
borough, according to a new study by
Property Shark and RENTCafe.
Th e July 30 study concluded that
in 44 of the 52 cities evaluated (with
Manhattan, Queens and Brooklyn counted
as three separate cities) people who
own homes are able to save money each
month aft er housing costs and living
necessities are paid for. Renters, on the
other hand, are likely to be in the red in
more than half of the cities included in
the study.
In Queens specifi cally, homeowners
can save $844 per month aft er expenses,
whereas renters are likely to be in the hole
for $497, the study shows.
One reason for the discrepancy is that
homeowners are typically older than
renters, and thus make more money
due to having more job experience, the
study notes. In addition, owner-occupied
homes are more likely to host married
couples, and it’s much easier for two people
to save money than a single renter.
Th e study explains that the discretionary
income in each city was determined
by subtracting housing and living costs
from the median household income. In
general, cities with higher living costs
also have a higher median income, but
that doesn’t always make it easier to save.
While Queens ranked in the middle of
the pack, Manhattan and Brooklyn are on
opposite ends of the spectrum.
In fact, the study shows that Manhattan
homeowners rank at the very top of the
list, saving up to $4,692 per month aft er
expenses, but the borough also has the
highest living expenses in the nation and
the highest median income. With the biggest
discrepancy of any city in the study,
however, Manhattan renters typically are
in debt for $1,466 each month.
Brooklyn did not fare nearly as well
as Manhattan or Queens. People who
own a home in Brooklyn are only able to
save about $223 per month, while renters
in the borough fared the second-worst
in the study with a debt of $2,091 per
month.
Overall, the study concludes that
Virginia Beach is the best city to rent
in with savings of $883 per month, and
Boston is the worst with a debt of $2,244.
Th e worst city to own a home in is
Miami, the study notes, with losses of
$1,219 per month.
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