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Rent vs Buy Calculator

The year buying overtakes renting after equity, exit cost, and cash opportunity cost.

Monthly rent, home price, down payment, mortgage rate, maintenance, selling cost, cash opportunity cost, and appreciation feed a 30-year simulation. The chart overlays cumulative rent against net-of-equity ownership cost; the Horizon Point marks the break-even year.

Part of: Saving & Spending Calculators

Plain English

Should I rent longer or buy now?

This compares buying costs, selling costs, rent, payment, and how long you may stay.

Start here: Enter your expected home price, rent, mortgage, and time horizon.

Start below
Fields marked optional can be skipped; results update as you type
HORIZON_POINT
Buy vs rent — the exact break-even horizon
$2200
$500$8000
$450000
$100000$2000000
20%
3%50%
6.5%
1%12%
1%
0%4%
3%
0%8%
7%
0%10%
Agent, title, staging, and other seller-side costs as a percent of future sale value.
5%
0%10%
Annual return the down payment and closing cash could earn if it stayed invested instead.
HORIZON POINT
Year 6.9
Buy if you'll hold the property longer than 7 years — otherwise rent.
CUMULATIVE NET COST
Rent (sunk)Own (net of equity)
5y10y15y20y25yHORIZON$792.0K$0
30y Rent Total
$792.0K
30y Interest
$459.2K
Final Equity
$1.09M
Final Exit Cost
$76.5K
Cash Opportunity
$343.8K
▸ METHODOLOGY
Monthly simulation over 30 years. Ownership costs include interest, property tax (assumed 1.25%/yr of price), annual maintenance, down payment, 3% closing, estimated selling cost if you move, and opportunity cost on cash tied up in the purchase. Renting is modeled as rent paid while down-payment cash can remain invested. The horizon is the first month cumulative rent exceeds net-of-equity ownership cost.

How to use

  1. Set Monthly Rent and Home Price.
  2. Adjust Down Payment %, Interest Rate, Maintenance % of price/year, expected Appreciation, selling cost, and cash return if you rent.
  3. Ownership includes interest, property tax (~1.25%/yr), maintenance, down payment, 3% closing, estimated selling cost, and cash opportunity cost.
  4. The Horizon Point is where cumulative rent equals ownership cost after equity, exit cost, and cash opportunity cost.

Examples

$2,200 rent, $450k home, 20% down, 6.5%
With 7% selling cost and 5% cash opportunity cost, break-even lands near year 6-8 depending on appreciation and maintenance assumptions.
No appreciation
Break-even slides out several years; in hot-rent markets it may still arrive before year 10.

Before you act on the result

Finance tools depend on assumptions about income, expenses, time, rates, and behavior. They are planning aids, not investment, tax, legal, or credit advice.

Run a conservative version and a stress version before relying on a single number.

Next up

Renting wins locally? Try the math in a cheaper city.Geographic Arbitrage · Migration Horizon → Buying wins? Model early payoff on the mortgage.Mortgage Extra Payment Calculator →

Frequently asked questions

› Why subtract equity from ownership cost? Troubleshooting

Equity is real value you keep when selling — it offsets the cash out. Renting has no equivalent store of value.

› What if the horizon never arrives?

The verdict shows No Break-Even. At those inputs (often low appreciation + high rate), renting stays cheaper across the 30-year window.

› Is closing cost included? Trust & accuracy

Yes — ownership starts with a 3% closing cost added to the down payment at month 0, and the model also includes an estimated selling cost if you move later.

Tips & related reading

See the Saving & Spending Calculators hub →

Tips & how-tos

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