Tools · Housing · All Access

Rent vs buy calculator

All-in own vs rent, with the down payment still earning if you lease. Type your lock and your stay. Default 6.71% is the Freddie Mac PMMS 30-year average the week of September 3, 2026 — an example, not today’s quote. Primer: how much house. Sequence: 12-step playbook.

House

Home price Down payment $ Rate % (example 6.71 PMMS, not your lock) Term (years) Property tax $/yr Insurance $/yr HOA $/mo Maintenance % of price / yr PMI $/mo

Rent + stay

Monthly rent (today) Years you will stay Buy closing costs % of price Selling costs % of future price Home appreciation % / yr (example) Rent inflation % / yr (example) After-tax opportunity % / yr (example)

Appreciation, rent inflation, and opportunity are user-typed. Do not treat them as a live feed.

After the stay

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Buyer net worth = future sale − remaining loan − selling costs + leftover vs rent invested. Renter net worth = (down + closing) grown at opportunity + the monthly all-in minus rent gap invested. Maintenance is a cash cost, not equity. IRC 121 $250k/$500k needs 2 of 5 years — Pub. 523. Paid sequence: rent vs buy playbook. Affordability: DTI · PITI.

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This rent vs buy calculator is free. A voluntary tip supports this classroom — not a paywall, not tax software, not ads.

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