Is Renting Actually Cheaper Than Buying in Milan Right Now?

Anyone searching for a flat in Milan this summer faces a tough calculation—especially in the centre and fast-growing districts. Even with interest rates stabilising and home prices climbing modestly, a new analysis from The Daily Milan shows that, for most residents, renting a two-room apartment remains more affordable than buying, at least for now.

The timing is not incidental. Milanese families are tightening budgets, while young professionals and newcomers are feeling the squeeze from a perfect storm of rent surges, mortgage pressures, and ongoing economic uncertainty linked to European energy costs and last summer’s dramatic heatwave. With fresh data emerging from city hall and private realtors, housing affordability is back at the centre of debates across the council and co-working spaces on via della Moscova alike.

Porta Nuova, Brera and Beyond

In Brera, the city’s art-splashed historic core, prices for owner-occupiers remain stubbornly high. Immobiliare.it reports an average of EUR 9,500 per square metre for purchase—meaning a small 60sqm apartment starts at EUR 570,000, before closing fees or notary costs. That same flat fetches around EUR 2,300 per month to rent, according to recent listings. In Porta Nuova, just north, with its glitzy towers and proximity to the fashion industry, purchase prices are even higher, often topping EUR 11,000 per square metre.

Contrast this with the Navigli area, where rents have risen 8% year-on-year but still lag Brera, hovering around EUR 1,550 per month for a similar two-room property. In up-and-coming Isola, a surge of tech startups and cafés has pushed average rents for new tenancies close to EUR 1,400 monthly—yet buying remains out of reach for many locals, with average sale prices still above EUR 6,200 per square metre.

Crunching the Numbers

What does this mean in practice? Take a median Milanese household with EUR 50,000 gross income and a 20% deposit saved. Even with today’s average fixed mortgage rates lingering at 4.2% for 25-year terms (data: Banca d’Italia, June 2026), the monthly repayment on a EUR 400,000 loan comes to around EUR 2,165—not counting condo fees or property taxes. Add those in, and buyers in central Milan face all-in monthly costs over EUR 2,400.

In comparison, average rents for similar properties in Navigli and Isola remain 15-30% lower, despite recent spikes. The breakeven point for ownership—where buying works out cheaper than renting—only materialises for those able to put down at least 35% cash and secure post-pandemic legacy mortgage deals at sub-3%. That is rare for today’s first-time buyers. Meanwhile, the city’s council-run Fondo Sostegno Affitti program, designed to help tenants with rent payments, has been overwhelmed, with more than 11,000 applications in the first four months of 2026 alone.

Looking ahead, Milanese renters are bracing for further market pressures as population growth and short-term rental conversions (especially near Porta Venezia and Corso Buenos Aires) bite into supply. For would-be buyers, patience—and a hefty savings buffer—look more crucial than ever. On current trends, for most residents, renting still edges out buying on price, at least until property values or mortgage rates wobble. Prospective movers are advised to check the city’s comprehensive housing calculator (Comune di Milano’s CasaMia portal) before committing to a purchase that may not pay off until well into the next decade.