To get straight to the point, Morgantown is currently a pretty good place to buy a home.

These days, in most American cities, the calculation often leads to the conclusion that "it's better to just rent," but Morgantown is a bit different.

The reason is simple. With West Virginia University (WVU) in the area, the demand for rentals is steady, while home prices are still significantly lower than the national average.

Currently, if you want to rent a 2-3 bedroom place in Morgantown, you should expect to pay around $1,100 to $1,300 per month. In contrast, the median home price is about $210,000 to $230,000. To make it easier to compare, let's look at a $220,000 home and a $1,200 monthly rent.

If you put down 20%, which is $44,000, on a $220,000 home and finance the remaining $176,000 with a 30-year mortgage at a 6.75% interest rate, your principal and interest payment would be about $1,140 per month. When you add property taxes and homeowners insurance, you can expect to pay around $1,350 to $1,450 per month.

If rent is $1,200, that means you would be spending an additional $150 to $250 per month if you bought a home.

With this kind of difference, the conversation changes.

Renting at $1,200 amounts to $14,400 in a year and $72,000 over five years. Of course, even if you buy a home, you still have to pay interest, taxes, and insurance, so you can't simply compare it as throwing away all your rent money. However, mortgage payments do include a portion of the principal that builds equity in your home.

Calculating the Price-to-Rent Ratio gives us about 15.3. Generally, a lower number indicates that buying is more favorable, and Morgantown is entering a range where purchasing should be seriously considered.

Of course, there's also the question of what if you had invested that $44,000 down payment in stocks or something else. Assuming a 7% return, that would yield about $3,080 a year. Buying a home also incurs repair costs. If the boiler breaks down or there's an issue with the roof, you can't just call the landlord; it comes out of your pocket.

Still, the advantage of Morgantown is that the initial home prices are relatively low. In the Washington DC area or other major cities on the East Coast, finding a decent home for $220,000 is already a challenge.

Moreover, being a college town is not something to overlook. There's a steady demand for housing from WVU students and staff, so even if you move later, you can consider renting it out. However, if the property is too far from the university or in an area that students don't prefer, the situation changes, so it's not advisable to approach it with the mindset that "Morgantown is always a good choice."

If a Korean family is planning to live in Morgantown for over five years, has stable employment, and is prepared for a down payment, I would suggest looking into buying a home rather than just continuing to rent.

On the other hand, if there's a high likelihood of moving to another city in 1-2 years, renting is more convenient due to the costs involved in buying and selling a home.

Ultimately, Morgantown is a bit different from American cities where "renting is the answer because home prices are too high." If you can own a home with just an additional $200 a month, it's worth crunching the numbers.

In the U.S., buying a home is not always the right answer, nor is renting always the right answer.

However, given the relationship between home prices and rent in Morgantown, I believe it definitely leans towards buying for those who plan to stay long-term.