Calculators

Real estate

Should I rent or buy?

Should you rent or should you buy your home? It takes more than looking at your mortgage payment to answer this question. This calculator helps you weed through the fees, taxes, and monthly payments to help you make a decision between these two options. This report is based on the original purchase price, fees and taxes payable at that time. Insurance and tax costs can fluctuate from year to year.

Definitions

Price of home

Purchase price of the home you wish to buy.

Cash on hand

Cash you have for the down payment and closing costs.

Interest rate

The current interest rate you expect to receive on your mortgage.

Term in years

The number of years over which you will repay this loan.

Property tax rate

Your property tax rate.

Loan origination rate

The percentage the lending institution charges for its origination fee.

Other closing costs

Estimate of all other closing costs for this loan. This should include filing fees, appraiser fees and any other miscellaneous fees paid.

Total closing costs

Total up front costs to close your loan. This is the sum of the loan origination fee, the amount paid for mortgage insurance premium and other closing costs.

Mortgage amount

Total amount for this mortgage.

After-tax investment return

Annual percentage return you would retain, after income tax was paid, if you invested your closing costs and down payment instead of purchasing a home.

Monthly rent payment

Amount you currently pay for rent per month.

Expected inflation rate

Inflation rate used to adjust amounts subject to annual increases. This includes rent, insurance and tax payments.

Home appreciates at

Annual appreciation you expect in the home you are purchasing.

Future sales commission

The percent of your home's selling price you expect to pay to a broker or real estate agent when you sell your home.