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Rent vs Buy Calculator

Should you rent or buy? Compare both over the years locally in your browser - with a net-worth comparison and break-even year. No upload.

This calculator gives a non-binding, model-based estimate and is not financial, tax or legal advice. More in the disclaimer
Purchase price
Down payment
Mortgage rate per year
Loan term in years
Holding period in years
Home appreciation per year
Comparable rent per month
Rent increase per year
Investment return per year
Annual running costs
Purchase costs
Selling costs

Result

-€47,229.93
Buying advantage
> 15
Break-even year
€1,561.00
Break-even monthly rent
€310,425.90
Wealth if buying
€357,655.83
Wealth if renting

Wealth advantage over time

Wealth advantage over time
#Wert
1-60000
2-58702
3-57440
4-56219
5-55044
6-53922
7-52858
8-51860
9-50935
10-50091
11-49336
12-48679
13-48129
14-47697
15-47394
16-47230

Year by year

Year by year
YearWealth if buyingWealth if rentingBuying advantage
1€73,741.21€132,443.32-€58,702.11
2€87,852.84€145,292.80-€57,439.95
3€102,345.71€158,564.43-€56,218.72
4€117,230.95€172,274.93-€55,043.97
5€132,520.07€186,441.72-€53,921.65
6€148,224.92€201,083.05-€52,858.13
7€164,357.71€216,217.96-€51,860.25
8€180,931.06€231,866.37-€50,935.31
9€197,957.98€248,049.09-€50,091.10
10€215,451.88€264,787.86-€49,335.98
11€233,426.59€282,105.43-€48,678.84
12€251,896.39€300,025.57-€48,129.18
13€270,876.00€318,573.15-€47,697.16
14€290,380.61€337,774.18-€47,393.56
15€310,425.90€357,655.83-€47,229.93
Buying advantage -€47,229.93
No upload100% local
Your content stays with youno third-party access
Servers in GermanyGDPR by design
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Is my file uploaded?

No. Everything runs in your browser - your file never leaves your device. How this is verifiable

Rent or buy - which one is financially better? You cannot answer that from the monthly budget alone, only over the whole time you intend to live in the home. This calculator compares two paths fairly: you buy with a down payment and a mortgage, or you rent and invest the money you do not tie up in property on the capital market. Both households have the same budget every year; whoever spends less on housing invests the difference. In the end what counts is net worth: when buying, the value of the home minus the remaining mortgage minus selling costs; when renting, the portfolio you built up.

The calculation runs entirely locally in your browser, in pure JavaScript - nothing is uploaded and nothing is stored. The calculator simulates year by year: the home rises with the assumed appreciation, the annuity loan is paid down month by month, running costs and rising rent flow in. The break-even year is the point from which buying wealth overtakes renting wealth - before it the buyer trails because of purchase costs and the agent commission on sale. Stay a shorter time and renting often wins; stay longer and buying usually does. Change an input and everything updates instantly.

An honest note: the result depends heavily on the assumptions - appreciation, rent growth and investment return are estimates, not guarantees. Figures are nominal (not inflation-adjusted), tax on selling an owner-occupied home is left out (in Germany usually tax-free after the holding period), and no calculator can price the personal value of ownership or flexibility. Try several scenarios rather than trusting a single number. Amounts in euros as an example - the maths applies to any currency. Not financial or investment advice.

Specifications

Specifications
Input formatsForm inputs (no file)
ProcessingLocally in your browser (JavaScript)
File uploadNone

In 3 steps

  1. Enter the purchase price, down payment, mortgage rate and loan term.
  2. Set the holding period, appreciation, comparable rent and cost assumptions.
  3. Read off the wealth advantage, break-even year and the year-by-year comparison.

Limitations: A model with constant assumptions for appreciation, rent growth and return - real values vary. Figures are nominal (not inflation-adjusted), without tax on selling an owner-occupied home. Annuity loan with a constant rate over the term. Amounts in euros as an example - the maths applies to any currency. Not financial or investment advice.

FAQ

Are my inputs uploaded?

No. The calculation runs entirely locally in the browser (pure JavaScript); nothing is sent or stored.

What does the break-even year mean?

It is the year from which your wealth when buying overtakes your wealth when renting. Stay longer than that and buying tends to pay off financially; move out earlier and renting does.

Why does the buyer trail at the start?

Purchase costs such as transfer tax, notary and agent, plus an agent commission on a later sale, are gone immediately. Buying has to make up that gap through appreciation and paying down the loan. In Germany, transfer tax (3.5 to 6.5 percent depending on the state), notary and land registry (around 2 percent) and any agent fee often add up to roughly 9 to 12 percent of the purchase price.

What return should I assume when renting?

The investment return is what the money you do not tie up would earn - for example a broadly diversified securities portfolio. It is an assumption; try several values, as it shifts the result a lot.

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