The American dream of homeownership has shifted again to finding an affordable single-family rental, as the costs of purchasing a house climbed. The monthly premium to own versus rent a starter home hit $1,030 per month, versus $884 a month last year, according to an article by Danielle Nguyen in a John Burns Research and Consulting report.

The reasons for the climb have been cited often: higher mortgage rates, elevated resale prices and low for-sale inventory, all of which have stopped a greater than usual number of home renters from buying. Instead, they remain in their rental homes longer, said Nguyen who talked with GlobeSt.com about this trend.

There have been many ups and downs over time in the costs of owning versus renting. It was cheaper between about 2009 to 2013 to rent. "But then owning really started to soar in 2021 due to COVID-19 demands for space and homes," Nguyen said.