Compare what renting and owning would actually cost you over the number of years you plan to stay in the home.
Results update as you type — there is no submit button, no email wall, and no account. The interest rate field is pre-filled with the latest national average 30-year fixed rate published on our mortgage rates page, with the survey's publication date shown beneath it, and every field is editable. Inputs used: Home price, Down payment, Interest rate, Loan term, Years you plan to stay, Current monthly rent, Annual rent increase, Annual home appreciation, Property tax (annual % of price), Homeowners insurance (annual), Maintenance (annual % of value), HOA dues (monthly), Purchase closing costs (% of price), Selling costs (% of sale price), ZIP code (optional).
A calculator does not know your credit profile, your documentation type, or the county tax assessment on a specific address. A licensed loan officer does. Send the exact scenario you just ran to a loan officer licensed in your state — free, with no account to create. Every loan officer shown is a LoanOfficer.ai user who opted into our loan officer directory, listed in even rotation with no paid placement.
Each loan officer card shows their photo, name, company, NMLS number, licensed states, specialties, and languages, with a link to their full directory profile and a "Start a conversation" chat window that opens a private thread with that loan officer, attaching the home price, down payment, loan amount, rate, term, and estimated monthly payment you just calculated. Their AI assistant replies in the chat within seconds, and every loan officer has their own separate conversation.
Rent is compounded by the annual increase you enter, so year two costs more than year one. Every year of rent is added together across your time horizon, plus renters insurance if you include it. Rent is treated as a pure expense: nothing you pay comes back to you at the end.
Owning includes the down payment, principal and interest across the years you stay, property taxes, homeowners insurance, mortgage insurance where the down payment is under 20 percent, HOA dues, ongoing maintenance as a percentage of home value, and estimated closing costs on both the purchase and the eventual sale. Against that, the calculator credits you with the equity you hold when you leave — the home's appreciated value minus the remaining loan balance and selling costs.
Buying front-loads cost. Closing costs and the interest-heavy early years of amortization mean short stays usually favor renting, while longer stays give appreciation and principal paydown time to overcome those costs. Change only the years-you-stay input and the answer often flips, which is the single most useful thing this calculator shows.
It does not model the return you might earn investing the down payment instead, the mortgage interest and property tax deduction, rent-free flexibility, or local market swings. Appreciation is entered as a steady annual percentage, and real housing markets are not steady. Treat the output as a comparison of assumptions, not a forecast.
It depends entirely on your inputs — price, rate, rent, appreciation, and closing costs. Rather than trusting a rule of thumb, change the years-you-stay field here and watch where the two totals cross.
No. Whether itemizing beats the standard deduction depends on your full tax picture, so it is deliberately left out. A CPA can tell you what it is worth in your situation.
Owners commonly budget roughly one percent of the home's value a year, higher for older homes and single-family properties with land, lower for newer condos where some upkeep sits inside the HOA dues.
Yes, if you plan to sell at the end of your horizon. Agent commissions, title, and transfer taxes come out of your equity, and leaving them out overstates what you walk away with.
Not necessarily. In some markets the monthly payment on a modest purchase is close to local rent, while in others it is far higher. This calculator compares cumulative cost, not just the first month.
These calculators are free educational tools. Results are estimates based on the numbers you enter and are not a loan offer, rate lock, or pre-approval. Taxes, insurance, HOA dues, and mortgage insurance vary by property and lender. Talk to a licensed loan officer for figures specific to your situation.