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Webster Parish, LA

Rent vs Own in Webster Parish, Louisiana

Owning the median home in Webster Parish clears the monthly bar: about $647/mo versus HUD's $854/mo 2-bedroom rent. The stack below shows which line items create that edge. Owner-occupied homes: 9,581.

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Buying is cheaper in Webster Parish

Owning runs about $647/mo here, under $854/mo to rent a comparable 2-bedroom. That is a $207/mo difference.

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

What This Data Tells Us About Renting vs Owning in Webster Parish

Primary driver

Income supports the median purchase price

Median household income is $41,182, and the 2.8x home-price-to-income ratio leaves room for the ownership stack (property tax alone is 1.0% of median income). The monthly gap above is more about mortgage rate and insurance assumptions than about the purchase price being out of reach.

Decision signal 2

The tax rate is a national tailwind

Webster Parish's 0.36% effective rate is among the lowest of 3,135 tracked counties: roughly 95% pay a higher rate. That low tax line is one reason owning can compete here.

Decision signal 3

Buying compares well inside the state

Using the assumptions above, Webster Parish ranks 14 of 64 Louisiana counties for buy-vs-rent value (rank 1 = the best relative deal for buying). It sits ahead of 50 other Louisiana counties on this measure.

Decision signal 4

Owning clears the monthly bar here

Webster Parish's median home ($114,500) carries $412/yr in property tax at 0.36%. Under a 20% down, 6.5%, 30-year stack the all-in ownership bill is about $647/mo, which undercuts HUD's $854/mo 2-bedroom Fair Market Rent by roughly $207/mo before maintenance, HOA, or closing costs.

Decision signal 5

HUD moved the rent benchmark down

HUD cut its 2-bedroom Fair Market Rent for Webster Parish from $903/mo in FY2025 to $854/mo in FY2026: it decreased by $49/mo (-5.4%). 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
$647
Mortgage (P&I) $579
Property Tax $34
Insurance (est.) $33
Monthly Rent (2-BR FMR)
$854
Studio$600
1-Bedroom$651
2-Bedroom$854
3-Bedroom$1,130
4-Bedroom$1,131

Adjust Your Scenario

Affordability Context

Median Household Income
$41,182
$3,432/mo
Home Price / Income
2.8x
Affordable (≤3x)
Tax-to-Income Ratio
1.0%
National benchmark: 2-4%

Who actually pays it here

In Webster Parish, once the mortgage ends staying put is close to free: the largest cluster of debt-free households faces a yearly charge under $800, so insurance and upkeep, not the tax office, set what the home costs to keep.

Webster Parish matches the national pattern: six-figure earners between $100,000 and $200,000 account for more of these write-offs than any other local group.

Against that holding-cost profile, the monthly ownership stack already undercuts HUD rent here, so the long-run tax bill is an ownership feature more than a reason to keep renting.

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

Jefferson Parish
Home: $251,400 Tax: $1,312/yr
East Baton Rouge Parish
Home: $248,800 Tax: $1,656/yr
St. Tammany Parish
Home: $284,000 Tax: $2,028/yr
Orleans Parish
Home: $315,700 Tax: $2,606/yr
Lafayette Parish
Home: $242,900 Tax: $1,380/yr
Caddo Parish
Home: $175,700 Tax: $1,085/yr

Frequently Asked Questions

Is it cheaper to rent or buy in Webster Parish, Louisiana? ▼
On the standard 20%-down / 6.5% stack, owning the median Webster Parish home undercuts HUD's 2-bedroom rent by about $207/mo. Change the down payment, rate, or time horizon in the calculator and that gap can flip - owning also builds equity that rent never does.
How much house can you afford in Webster Parish? ▼
On the common 3x-income guideline, a $41,182 household here can afford up to $123,546, which comfortably covers this county's $114,500 median home price -- a healthier affordability picture than many of the counties tracked on this site.
What is the average rent in Webster Parish? ▼
HUD prices a 2-bedroom unit at $854/mo here. Sizing up matters: going from a studio to a 4-bedroom adds about $531/mo, so the per-bedroom jump is worth checking against your actual space needs before assuming the 2-BR figure applies to your situation.
What is the median home price in Webster Parish? ▼
$114,500, per the Census Bureau's ACS 5-Year Estimates. What stands out more than the price itself is the tax load on it: this county's 0.36% effective rate sits near the low end of the 3,135 counties tracked here.
How does Webster Parish compare to other Louisiana counties for renting vs buying? ▼
Out of 64 Louisiana counties ranked here on buy-vs-rent value, Webster Parish lands at spot 14, putting it in the more buy-favorable quarter of the state. The <a href="/states/louisiana">Louisiana state page</a> lists every peer county's tax bill beside this one.
Is rent going up or down in Webster Parish? ▼
HUD's 2-bedroom Fair Market Rent figure has fallen 5.4% between the FY2025 and FY2026 publications, the two most recent years tracked here.

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

Verify with HUD →