Buy vs Rent Calculator — AI Made Me Wealthy

Required inputs

Home price Monthly rent (comparable home) Mortgage rate (APR %) Down payment (%) Years lived in home

Optional assumptions

Mortgage term (years) Home value appreciation (% / yr) Rent inflation (% / yr) Inflation for other costs (% / yr) Return on reinvested cash (% / yr) Property tax rate (% of home value / yr) Home insurance (% of home value / yr) PMI rate (% of original loan / yr) if <20% down Purchase closing costs (% of home price) Sale closing costs (% of sale price) Repairs & maintenance (% of home value / yr) Capital expenditures (% of home value / yr) Monthly utilities (buy) Monthly utilities (rent) Renter’s insurance (monthly)

PMI automatically stops once Loan-to-Value ≤ 80% (based on current home value). Mortgage principal/interest is fixed; other costs inflate at “Inflation for other costs”.

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Results

Enter inputs and click Calculate.

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Net Worth Impact over time

Hover to inspect each year. Breakeven shown when lines cross.

Breakeven: —

Methodology (high level)

Out-of-pocket includes monthly costs plus purchase + sale closing costs and the down payment cash outlay.
Equity (buy) = down payment + principal paid + home appreciation + invested monthly savings if buying is cheaper.
Equity (rent) = invested monthly savings if renting is cheaper.
Net Worth Impact = Equity − Out-of-pocket (reported by year, including year 0).