Rent vs buy: when does buying pull ahead?
A US example, in US dollars. Change one assumption, how fast the home's value grows, and watch the answer move.
- Home price
- $450,000
- Down payment
- 20%
- Mortgage, 30-year fixed
- 6.25%
- Comparable rent
- $2,400/month
- Years you stay
- 7
After seven years, renting leaves this household $23,999 ahead.
- 0%Not within 30 years
- 1%Year 30
- 2%Year 24
- 3%Year 13
- 4%Year 6
- 5%Year 4
- 6%Year 3
Source: the free Rent vs Buy model, Sensitivity tab, using the example household on the left; other assumptions at the model's defaults. An illustration, not a forecast.
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