Rent vs. Buy Calculator

Compare the total cost of renting versus owning a home over your chosen horizon. Models mortgage amortization, taxes, insurance, maintenance, appreciation, rent inflation, and transaction costs. WCAG 2.1 AA.

Rent vs. Buy Calculator

Compare the true cost of renting versus owning over your selected time horizon. We account for mortgage amortization, property taxes, insurance, maintenance, appreciation, rent inflation, and transaction costs so you can make a confident, data-backed decision.

Calculator

Home purchase

$
Down payment input mode
$
%
$
$
$

Results

PV total — Buy
$0
PV total — Rent
$0
Nominal total — Buy
$0
Nominal total — Rent
$0

Methodology (present value comparison)

PI = r × L / (1 − (1 + r)^(−n)) (fixed-rate mortgage)
PV = Σ (CashFlow_t / (1 + d)^t) with discount rate d
For rent, invested cash (down payment + buyer closing costs) compounds at your assumed return and is netted against rent totals.

FAQ

What costs are included for owners?

Mortgage P&I, taxes, insurance, maintenance, HOA, purchase closing costs, selling costs, and net sale proceeds.

Why use present value?

PV accounts for timing of cash flows, allowing fair comparison of monthly expenses and future proceeds.

Author: Ugo Candido. Reviewed by: Finance SME Team. Last updated: . Category: Finance › Mortgages.

Audit: Complete
Formula (LaTeX) + variables + units
This section shows the formulas used by the calculator engine, plus variable definitions and units.
Formula (extracted LaTeX)
\[','\]
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Formula (extracted text)
PI = r × L / (1 − (1 + r)^(−n)) (fixed-rate mortgage) PV = Σ (CashFlow_t / (1 + d)^t) with discount rate d For rent, invested cash (down payment + buyer closing costs) compounds at your assumed return and is netted against rent totals.
Variables and units
  • P = principal (loan amount) (currency)
  • r = periodic interest rate (annual rate ÷ payments per year) (1)
  • n = total number of payments (years × payments per year) (count)
  • M = periodic payment for principal + interest (currency)
  • T = property tax (annual or monthly depending on input) (currency)
  • I = homeowners insurance (annual or monthly depending on input) (currency)
  • HOA = homeowners association dues (monthly) (currency)
Sources (authoritative):
Changelog
Version: 0.1.0-draft
Last code update: 2026-01-19
0.1.0-draft · 2026-01-19
  • Initial audit spec draft generated from HTML extraction (review required).
  • Verify formulas match the calculator engine and convert any text-only formulas to LaTeX.
  • Confirm sources are authoritative and relevant to the calculator methodology.
Verified by Ugo Candido on 2026-01-19
Profile · LinkedIn

Full original guide (expanded)

Rent vs. Buy Calculator

Compare the true cost of renting versus owning over your selected time horizon. We account for mortgage amortization, property taxes, insurance, maintenance, appreciation, rent inflation, and transaction costs so you can make a confident, data-backed decision.

Calculator

Home purchase

$
Down payment input mode
$
%
$
$
$

Results

PV total — Buy
$0
PV total — Rent
$0
Nominal total — Buy
$0
Nominal total — Rent
$0

Methodology (present value comparison)

PI = r × L / (1 − (1 + r)^(−n)) (fixed-rate mortgage)
PV = Σ (CashFlow_t / (1 + d)^t) with discount rate d
For rent, invested cash (down payment + buyer closing costs) compounds at your assumed return and is netted against rent totals.

FAQ

What costs are included for owners?

Mortgage P&I, taxes, insurance, maintenance, HOA, purchase closing costs, selling costs, and net sale proceeds.

Why use present value?

PV accounts for timing of cash flows, allowing fair comparison of monthly expenses and future proceeds.

Author: Ugo Candido. Reviewed by: Finance SME Team. Last updated: . Category: Finance › Mortgages.

Audit: Complete
Formula (LaTeX) + variables + units
This section shows the formulas used by the calculator engine, plus variable definitions and units.
Formula (extracted LaTeX)
\[','\]
','
Formula (extracted text)
PI = r × L / (1 − (1 + r)^(−n)) (fixed-rate mortgage) PV = Σ (CashFlow_t / (1 + d)^t) with discount rate d For rent, invested cash (down payment + buyer closing costs) compounds at your assumed return and is netted against rent totals.
Variables and units
  • P = principal (loan amount) (currency)
  • r = periodic interest rate (annual rate ÷ payments per year) (1)
  • n = total number of payments (years × payments per year) (count)
  • M = periodic payment for principal + interest (currency)
  • T = property tax (annual or monthly depending on input) (currency)
  • I = homeowners insurance (annual or monthly depending on input) (currency)
  • HOA = homeowners association dues (monthly) (currency)
Sources (authoritative):
Changelog
Version: 0.1.0-draft
Last code update: 2026-01-19
0.1.0-draft · 2026-01-19
  • Initial audit spec draft generated from HTML extraction (review required).
  • Verify formulas match the calculator engine and convert any text-only formulas to LaTeX.
  • Confirm sources are authoritative and relevant to the calculator methodology.
Verified by Ugo Candido on 2026-01-19
Profile · LinkedIn

Rent vs. Buy Calculator

Compare the true cost of renting versus owning over your selected time horizon. We account for mortgage amortization, property taxes, insurance, maintenance, appreciation, rent inflation, and transaction costs so you can make a confident, data-backed decision.

Calculator

Home purchase

$
Down payment input mode
$
%
$
$
$

Results

PV total — Buy
$0
PV total — Rent
$0
Nominal total — Buy
$0
Nominal total — Rent
$0

Methodology (present value comparison)

PI = r × L / (1 − (1 + r)^(−n)) (fixed-rate mortgage)
PV = Σ (CashFlow_t / (1 + d)^t) with discount rate d
For rent, invested cash (down payment + buyer closing costs) compounds at your assumed return and is netted against rent totals.

FAQ

What costs are included for owners?

Mortgage P&I, taxes, insurance, maintenance, HOA, purchase closing costs, selling costs, and net sale proceeds.

Why use present value?

PV accounts for timing of cash flows, allowing fair comparison of monthly expenses and future proceeds.

Author: Ugo Candido. Reviewed by: Finance SME Team. Last updated: . Category: Finance › Mortgages.

Audit: Complete
Formula (LaTeX) + variables + units
This section shows the formulas used by the calculator engine, plus variable definitions and units.
Formula (extracted LaTeX)
\[','\]
','
Formula (extracted text)
PI = r × L / (1 − (1 + r)^(−n)) (fixed-rate mortgage) PV = Σ (CashFlow_t / (1 + d)^t) with discount rate d For rent, invested cash (down payment + buyer closing costs) compounds at your assumed return and is netted against rent totals.
Variables and units
  • P = principal (loan amount) (currency)
  • r = periodic interest rate (annual rate ÷ payments per year) (1)
  • n = total number of payments (years × payments per year) (count)
  • M = periodic payment for principal + interest (currency)
  • T = property tax (annual or monthly depending on input) (currency)
  • I = homeowners insurance (annual or monthly depending on input) (currency)
  • HOA = homeowners association dues (monthly) (currency)
Sources (authoritative):
Changelog
Version: 0.1.0-draft
Last code update: 2026-01-19
0.1.0-draft · 2026-01-19
  • Initial audit spec draft generated from HTML extraction (review required).
  • Verify formulas match the calculator engine and convert any text-only formulas to LaTeX.
  • Confirm sources are authoritative and relevant to the calculator methodology.
Verified by Ugo Candido on 2026-01-19
Profile · LinkedIn
Formulas

(Formulas preserved from original page content, if present.)

Version 0.1.0-draft
Citations

Add authoritative sources relevant to this calculator (standards bodies, manuals, official docs).

Changelog
  • 0.1.0-draft — 2026-01-19: Initial draft (review required).