Rent vs Buy Calculator
Rent vs ownership cash flow — P&I plus tax, insurance, and maintenance. Click any i for detail.
Rent & ownership costs
Monthly rent ($)
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Rent
Current or expected rent. |
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Loan principal ($)
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Principal
Mortgage balance after down payment (not full purchase price). |
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Interest rate (%)
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Rate
Annual mortgage rate. |
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Term (years)
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Term
Amortization length. |
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Annual property tax ($)
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Tax
Yearly property tax. |
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Annual homeowners insurance ($)
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Ins
Yearly HOI premium. |
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Annual maintenance ($)
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Maint
Repairs and upkeep allowance. |
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Monthly tax benefit ($)
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Benefit
Optional itemized/mortgage interest sketch credit; 0 if none. |
How to use this calculator
- Enter monthly rent.
- Set loan principal, rate, and term.
- Add annual tax, insurance, and maintenance.
- Optionally subtract a monthly tax benefit and compare cash costs.
Results explained
Ownership monthly cash cost ≈ amortizing P&I + property tax/12 + insurance/12 + maintenance/12 − optional tax benefit. This ignores equity build, appreciation, HOA, closing costs, and opportunity cost of a down payment.
Quick reference: rent vs buy cash
own/mo ≈ P&I + tax/12 + ins/12 + maint/12 − benefit.
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| P&I | Standard amortizing payment |
| Principal | After-down loan amount |
| 5-year view | Rent×60 vs own×60 cash |
| Equity | Not credited here |
Cash-flow worksheet only — not a full buy-vs-rent NPV model.
How the estimate is built
P&I from amortizing mortgage; own = P&I + (tax+ins+maint)/12 − taxBenefit.
Example scenario
$400k @ 6.5% 30-yr plus carrying costs vs $2,200 rent — compare the monthly totals on the result card.
FAQ
Home price and down payment?
Enter the loan principal after your down payment.
Does this include equity?
No — principal paydown is ignored on purpose.
HOA fees?
Add them into maintenance or raise principal costs separately.
Closing costs?
Not amortized here.