Compare rent-path and buy-path net worth using equal starting cash, symmetric monthly cash-flow investing, ownership costs, appreciation, and transaction costs.
A quick decision brief for this specific tool
Rent and growth, renter insurance, home price/down payment/mortgage, ownership costs, appreciation, investment return, purchase/sale transaction costs, and time horizon
Rent-path and buy-path net worth, first modeled buy crossover, cumulative cash costs, portfolios, equity, 5/10/30-year comparisons, timeline, and buyer cost breakdown
Both paths start with equal cash; the renter invests down payment plus purchase costs, the cheaper path invests each monthly cash-flow difference, and buyer net worth deducts the remaining loan and modeled selling costs
Choose your path
Compare renting and buying under equal starting cash and monthly cash-flow constraints, including opportunity cost and transaction costs, without presenting a scenario as personal advice.
See which path leaves more modeled net worth at the expected move date.
Enter rent, home price, financing, ownership costs, and horizon; compare both net-worth paths.
Can identify the main assumptions driving the result and does not compare rent with mortgage principal-and-interest alone.
Account for purchase and sale costs before assuming equity makes buying cheaper.
Set a short horizon and local transaction-cost estimates, then inspect net sale proceeds and crossover.
Sees a fair same-cash comparison and no reversed or fabricated break-even label.
Test appreciation, rent growth, investment return, maintenance, and HOA independently.
Open advanced assumptions, change one variable at a time, and compare the timeline and 5/10/30-year table.
Treats smooth returns as scenarios and knows which taxes, fees, PMI, utilities, and repairs are excluded.
Outputs and checklists are planning aids. Review the linked current authorities and the records, terms, instructions, and requirements that apply to your exact situation before a consequential decision.
This tool is part of these guided projects. Each project provides step-by-step instructions with checklists and all the tools you need in one place.
Build a dated relocation dossier from household needs, housing evidence, exact inventory, comparable written terms, move-day controls, and delivery acceptance.
Coordinate a home-purchase decision from actual cash flow, official credit and loan documents, inspected property evidence, written contracts, and closing controls.
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Plan fixed-rate mortgage payments, conventional PMI milestones, extra principal payments and remaining cash to close. Compare a separate income-based affordability scenario.
Plan a down payment, user-set closing costs, additional cash needed, a month-end savings timeline, comparison targets, and a starting PMI illustration.
Allocate exactly 100% of monthly income, compare non-negative actual spending, expose fixed-dollar extras, and review transparent balances and planning ratios.
Modeled monthly ownership cash outflow includes fixed-rate principal and interest, entered property tax and maintenance percentages of modeled home value, annual home insurance divided by 12, and monthly HOA. Illustrative defaults are not local cost estimates. PMI, tax benefits, utilities, moving costs and unmodeled repairs are excluded.
Monthly outflow = Mortgage P&I + Property tax/12 + Insurance/12 + Maintenance/12 + Monthly HOABoth paths start with the same cash. The renter invests the down payment plus modeled purchase costs; each month the lower-cost path invests the difference. Buyer net worth deducts the loan balance and user-set selling costs.
Buy Net Worth = Home Value − Selling Costs − Loan Balance + Buyer PortfolioThe crossover is the first annual snapshot where buy-path net worth meets or exceeds rent-path net worth within 30 modeled years. It may be beyond the selected horizon, can reverse later, and is not an exact move or sale date. Negative growth is supported within stated model limits.
Crossover Year = first year where Buy Net Worth ≥ Rent Net WorthUpdated: August 2026
Illustrative $450,000 purchase, 20% down, 6.5% note rate and 30-year term, with 1.2% annual property tax, $1,500 annual insurance, 1% annual maintenance and zero HOA. These are entered assumptions, not market quotes; PMI and other omitted costs are excluded.
→ $2,275.44 monthly principal and interest; $3,225.44 first-month modeled ownership outflow under the stated assumptions
A couple comparing renting a house at $1,800/month vs buying at $320,000 in a lower-cost market.
→ Direction depends on rent growth, financing, transaction costs, maintenance, appreciation, and investment return
A potential buyer changes purchase and sale cost assumptions before treating gross home equity as spendable net proceeds.
Enter property-specific tax, insurance, maintenance, HOA and transaction costs. Distinguish cash outflow from net-worth effects and review omitted costs such as PMI. No fixed markup or maintenance percentage is a reliable estimate for every property.
Enter local purchase and sale cost estimates and test the actual expected move date. A short horizon can be sensitive to these costs, but the model does not assume one universal break-even period.
Model renting and buying with the same starting cash and monthly housing budget. Pin a temporary baseline to compare assumptions, reconcile the selected year's net worth and download the current inputs and annual results. This is a sensitivity scenario, not a personal housing recommendation.