Rent vs Buy Calculator
Compare renting vs buying a home online free — break-even analysis, net worth impact and total costs over time. Nothing leaves your device — fast and private.
Should you rent or buy?
- Financial comparison winnerBuying is cheaper
- Estimated net cost of buying$30,320
- Total rent paid over period$201,482
- Estimated home value in 7 yrs$508,912
- Equity accumulated$219,580
- Monthly mortgage P&I$2,022.62
Calculated in your browser — nothing you type is sent anywhere.
Renting is not throwing money away
The popular claim that rent is wasted and a mortgage builds wealth compares the wrong things. A large share of an early mortgage payment is interest, which is exactly as unrecoverable as rent. Add property tax, insurance, maintenance, and the 6% to 8% of value that disappears in transaction costs when you sell, and owning carries a substantial cost of its own.
This calculator runs both paths month by month for thirty years. Renting accumulates rent that rises each year. Buying accumulates the down payment, every mortgage payment, ownership costs, and the cost of selling, then credits back the equity and the appreciation. The output is the year in which the buying path finally becomes cheaper.
The variables that decide it
- How long you stay. The single biggest factor. Under five years, transaction costs usually make renting cheaper regardless of the rate.
- The rent-to-price ratio. Cheap rent against expensive homes pushes the crossover out for years. The reverse pulls it in fast.
- Appreciation. The most speculative input. Set it conservatively, around inflation, and treat anything above that as upside rather than plan.
- Maintenance. Budget 1% to 2% of value per year. Owners consistently forget this and it changes the answer.
How to use the result honestly
Change one input at a time and watch the crossover move. If a plausible appreciation assumption flips the answer, the decision is genuinely close and should be made on non-financial grounds: stability, schools, control over the property, and how confident you are about staying put.
The comparison here does not model investing the down payment while you rent. If you would genuinely invest that lump sum rather than spend it, the renting path is stronger than shown.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long do I need to stay for buying to beat renting?
Commonly five to seven years, but it varies enormously by market. In areas where rents are low relative to prices the crossover can be a decade or more. The calculator gives the year for your specific numbers.Is renting really throwing money away?
No. Rent buys housing for the period, exactly as mortgage interest, property tax, insurance and maintenance do. Only the principal portion of a mortgage payment builds equity, and early on that portion is small.What costs of owning do people forget?
Maintenance and repairs, property tax increases, homeowners insurance, HOA dues, and the 6% to 8% of value lost to agent commissions and closing costs when selling.What appreciation rate should I assume?
Long-run home appreciation has broadly tracked inflation plus a small margin. Assuming 2% to 3% is defensible. Assuming 7% because of the last few years is how people talk themselves into bad purchases.Does this include the mortgage interest tax deduction?
No. Since the standard deduction increased, most households no longer itemise, so including it would overstate the case for buying for the majority of users. If you do itemise, treat the buying path as slightly better than shown.Should I include the return on investing my down payment?
It is a legitimate adjustment if you would truly invest that money instead. This calculator does not model it, so the renting path is presented conservatively.Is any of my data saved?
No. Everything is computed in your browser and nothing leaves the page.