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Rent vs Buy Analysis

A detailed model comparing renting versus homeownership. Includes closing costs, PMI, opportunity cost, and multi-year projections — with optional advanced modeling for appreciation, selling costs, tax benefits, HOA, and cost inflation.

Full Cost Model: All-in Ownership − Equity Built

Your Scenario

$
$
0% down
%
Current typical rate
yr
How long you plan to stay (affects closing costs and break-even)
$
$
%
% of home price per year
$
%
Annual rent increase (national avg ~3%)
%
% of home price (typical: 2-5%)
%
Annual return if invested elsewhere (typical long-term range: 3-8%)
Advanced Options
$
Per month (0 if none)
%
Annual rate (national avg ~3-4%)
%
Realtor fees + transfer taxes (typical 7-10%)
%
Annual increase for tax, insurance, maintenance
%
Your federal income tax bracket
Determines standard deduction ($15k / $30k)
How it works: This calculator computes your true monthly cost of ownership (including all fees, closing costs, PMI, and opportunity cost), then subtracts equity built and any tax benefit. The result is your "effective" ownership cost compared to rent. Open Advanced Options to add home appreciation, selling costs, cost inflation, HOA fees, and tax deduction modeling.

Monthly Breakdown

Principal & Interest
$0
Loan: $0
Property Tax
$0
/month
Insurance
$0
/month
Maintenance Reserve
$0
/month
HOA Fees
$0
/month
PMI (if applicable)
$0
N/A
Closing Costs
$0
Amortized monthly
Tax Benefit ⓘ
$0
Itemized vs standard deduction
Break-Even Analysis
Calculating...
Your Current Rent $0
Effective Ownership Cost (Year 1) $0
Click Calculate to see your personalized analysis.
Detailed Cost Breakdown
Mortgage P&I $0

Assumptions & Limitations

  • PMI estimated at 0.5-1.0% of loan amount annually, varying by down payment; auto-drops when LTV reaches 80% (based on appreciated home value). Automatically disabled when down payment is 20%+.
  • Closing costs are amortized over your expected stay (not the full loan term) for the monthly comparison
  • Opportunity cost calculated on down payment only (not closing costs)
  • Rent increases are compounded annually at the specified rate; actual increases vary by market
  • Maintenance is a reserve estimate; actual costs vary and are often irregular
  • Break-even analysis uses cumulative costs net of equity (including appreciation and selling costs); individual years may vary

Advanced Options (when enabled)

  • Home appreciation uses a constant annual rate; real markets fluctuate and can decline
  • Selling costs are deducted from home value when calculating your equity position at any point
  • Cost inflation applies equally to property tax, insurance, and maintenance each year
  • Tax benefit uses current federal brackets and standard deduction; does not model state taxes, future bracket changes, or other itemized deductions you may have
  • HOA fees are held flat (not inflated) since increases vary widely by association
  • ARM modeling uses a single adjusted rate after the fixed period; real ARMs have periodic and lifetime caps and adjust based on an index

Scenario Comparison & Sensitivity

  • Scenario comparison uses fixed offsets from your base inputs; real-world variance is wider
  • Sensitivity table varies appreciation and ROI independently; in practice they may correlate
  • All scenarios and sensitivity cells use the same loan term and stay duration as your base inputs

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