Inputs to verify
The result is only as useful as the numbers.
- Current rent and expected rent changes
- Complete ownership payment
- Down payment and closing costs
- Maintenance and selling costs
- Time horizon
- Estimated appreciation and loan balance
Free interactive mortgage tool
Rent versus buy calculator
Compare planning assumptions for rent, ownership outflow, time horizon, and estimated equity.
How the tool works
Use the formula. Then challenge the assumptions.
A rent-versus-buy comparison should consider monthly outflow, upfront cash, expected time in the property, estimated maintenance, possible rent growth, selling costs, loan balance change, and an assumed future property value. It is a scenario, not a forecast.
Buying may create estimated equity over time, but a short holding period can make transaction and selling costs more important. Renting may preserve flexibility, while buying may create stability and ownership benefits.
Questions to ask
Before relying on the result
- How long do you expect to remain in the property?
- What cash would be committed at closing?
- How sensitive is the result to appreciation and maintenance assumptions?
Continue the review
Connect the estimate to a useful answer.
This free planning tool provides an educational estimate. It is not a quote, approval, commitment to lend, or substitute for a Loan Estimate and documented mortgage review.
Your next step