Want to lower the rent pain? Double-up.
My trusty spreadsheet used some curious rent data from LendingTree to quantify what almost every budget-watching tenant knows: having a roommate in a two-bedroom unit is financially better than going solo in a one-bedroom rental. The stats were based on the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s “fair market rents” for 50 large metropolitan areas, including seven in California.
In the seven California metros, the median results showed that doubling up cut an individual renter’s monthly costs by 38%, according to my comparison of HUD rent estimates for the year ending October 2026. Note that HUD tracks rent and utility costs for newer tenants in buildings that are 2 years or older, at the slightly below-average 40th percentile.
We are talking about a $784 monthly gap – the difference between California’s $2,085 one-bedroom rent for a lone tenant and the $1,301 cost of a two-bedroom unit split two ways.
By the way, the financial benefits from doubling up are growing. Five years ago, California’s savings rate equaled 36%.
On a national scale, thanks to California’s lofty rents, the percentage savings are relatively modest, while the dollar gap seems large.
In the 43 metros elsewhere across the nation, doubling up saved 42%. That’s the $621 gap between the median $1,478 one-bedroom rent and the $857 per-tenant rent when a two-bedroom is split. This 42% U.S. savings equals the rate of five years ago.
Sadly, none of the seven California markets had a doubling-up savings rate above the national norm. Ponder their results, ranked by percentage savings …
San Jose: 42% savings (No. 26 smallest of the 50 metros). That’s from a $1,240 gap (the largest of the 50) between $2,982 for a one-bedroom and $1,742 for a two-bedroom split. Five years ago, savings ran 40%.
San Diego: 39% savings (No. 8 smallest) or $958 (No. 5 largest) – $2,459 one-bedroom vs. $1,501 two-bedroom split. Five years ago? 35% savings.
San Francisco: 39% savings (No. 11 smallest) or $1,175 (No. 3 largest) – $2,977 one-bedroom vs. $1,802 two-bedroom split. Five years ago? Same as the latest savings.
Fresno: 39% savings (No. 8 smallest) or $523 (No. 35 largest) – $1,355 one-bedroom vs. $832 two-bedroom split. Five years ago? 37% savings.
Inland Empire: 38% savings (No. 3 smallest) or $676 (No. 21 largest) – $1,777 one-bedroom vs. $1,101 two-bedroom split. Five years ago? 37% savings.
Sacramento: 38% savings (No. 4 smallest) or $704 (No. 16 largest) – $1,832 one-bedroom vs. $1,128 two-bedroom split. Five years ago? 37% savings.
Los Angeles-Orange County: 38% savings (No. 3 smallest) or $784 (No. 8 largest) – $2,085 one-bedroom vs. $1,301 two-bedroom split. Five years ago? 36% savings.
Jonathan Lansner is the business columnist for the Southern California News Group. He can be reached at jlansner@scng.com