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Carbon County, WY

Rent vs Own in Carbon County, Wyoming

Renting beats owning in Carbon County on these numbers. HUD's 2-bedroom benchmark is $980/mo against roughly $1,298/mo to own. Here is where the gap comes from. Owner-occupied homes: 4,664.

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Renting is cheaper in Carbon County

A 2-bedroom rental here runs $980/mo, below the $1,298/mo that owning works out to under the assumptions below. That is a $318/mo difference.

Based on 20% down, 6.5% rate, 30-year mortgage. Adjust below.

What This Data Tells Us About Renting vs Owning in Carbon County

Primary driver

Buying compares well inside the state

Using the assumptions above, Carbon County ranks 5 of 23 Wyoming counties for buy-vs-rent value (rank 1 = the best relative deal for buying). It sits ahead of 18 other Wyoming counties on this measure.

Decision signal 2

Price and income sit in the middle band

Median household income is $70,511, putting the home-price-to-income ratio at 3.2x. Property taxes consume 1.8% of median income; use those two burdens separately rather than treating the mortgage payment as the whole ownership cost.

Decision signal 3

The monthly comparison favours renting

The median home value in Carbon County, Wyoming is $222,700 with a median annual property tax of $1,279, an effective rate of 0.57%. At 20% down on a 6.5% 30-year mortgage, the all-in monthly ownership cost comes to $1,298, above the $980/mo HUD prices a 2-bedroom rental at. Renting is about $318/mo cheaper before equity build-up or long-term appreciation.

Decision signal 4

HUD moved the rent benchmark down

HUD cut its 2-bedroom Fair Market Rent for Carbon County from $982/mo in FY2025 to $980/mo in FY2026: it decreased by $2/mo (-0.2%). A falling benchmark narrows the case for buying here, and it usually reflects HUD re-estimating the local market rather than existing rents being cut.

Methodology & disclaimer

This calculator is for informational purposes only and is not tax, legal, or financial advice. Property tax figures come from the U.S. Census Bureau ACS 5-Year Estimates and rent figures come from HUD Fair Market Rents; both describe area medians, not individual transactions. Insurance is estimated at 0.35% of home value annually and closing costs, maintenance, HOA, and PMI are not included. Consult a licensed mortgage, tax, or real-estate professional before making a buy-or-rent decision based on these numbers.

Monthly Cost Breakdown

Estimated Monthly Ownership
$1,298
Mortgage (P&I) $1,126
Property Tax $107
Insurance (est.) $65
Monthly Rent (2-BR FMR)
$980
Studio$775
1-Bedroom$854
2-Bedroom$980
3-Bedroom$1,293
4-Bedroom$1,454

Adjust Your Scenario

Affordability Context

Median Household Income
$70,511
$5,876/mo
Home Price / Income
3.2x
Moderate (3-5x)
Tax-to-Income Ratio
1.8%
National benchmark: 2-4%

Who actually pays it here

Once the mortgage ends, staying put is close to free here: the largest cluster of debt-free households faces a yearly charge under $800, small enough that insurance and upkeep, not the tax office, decide what the home costs to keep.

Unusually, returns above $200,000 form the single largest block claiming it, a concentration only a minority of US counties show and a marker of high property values.

Bill bands are Census ACS counts of owner-occupied homes without a mortgage. Income brackets are IRS Statistics of Income county data for tax year 2022, counted over FILERS reporting real-estate taxes on Schedule A, which is a smaller group than homeowners: most filers take the standard deduction.

Nearby Counties

Laramie County
Home: $348,700 Tax: $1,980/yr
Natrona County
Home: $273,000 Tax: $1,645/yr
Campbell County
Home: $279,100 Tax: $1,599/yr
Sweetwater County
Home: $251,400 Tax: $1,542/yr
Fremont County
Home: $268,800 Tax: $1,671/yr
Park County
Home: $400,500 Tax: $2,262/yr

Frequently Asked Questions

Is it cheaper to rent or buy in Carbon County, Wyoming? ▼
Buying comes out ahead in Carbon County under the standard 20%-down, 6.5% assumptions used on this page, by roughly $318 a month. That gap narrows or reverses with a bigger down payment, a lower rate, or a longer time horizon (owning builds equity that renting doesn't), so treat the number as a starting point, not a verdict, and rerun it with your own terms in the calculator above.
What is the average rent in Carbon County? ▼
HUD prices a 2-bedroom unit at $980/mo here. Sizing up matters: going from a studio to a 4-bedroom adds about $679/mo, so the per-bedroom jump is worth checking against your actual space needs before assuming the 2-BR figure applies to your situation.
How much house can you afford in Carbon County? ▼
On the common 3x-income guideline, a $70,511 household here can afford up to $211,533 -- about $11,167 short of this county's $222,700 median home. That gap is typically closed with a larger down payment, dual incomes, or a longer search outside the median price band.
What is the median home price in Carbon County? ▼
$222,700, per the Census Bureau's ACS 5-Year Estimates. The property tax on that value works out to roughly 0.57% a year, in line with typical rates for the area.
How does Carbon County compare to other Wyoming counties for renting vs buying? ▼
Out of 23 Wyoming counties ranked here on buy-vs-rent value, Carbon County lands at spot 5, putting it in the more buy-favorable quarter of the state. See the <a href="/states/wyoming">Wyoming property tax overview</a> for how neighboring counties stack up.
Is rent going up or down in Carbon County? ▼
HUD's 2-bedroom Fair Market Rent figure has fallen 0.2% between the FY2025 and FY2026 publications, the two most recent years tracked here.

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Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.

Data sourced from the U.S. Census Bureau (American Community Survey). See our methodology for details. Retrieved and formatted by PlainPropertyTax

Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Government Finances State and local property tax revenue by jurisdiction · 2025

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