Should you rent or buy? Compare the true long-term cost of buying a home against renting and investing the difference — including buying costs, ongoing costs, and capital growth.
The Property
$
$
%
$
%
$
%
Renting Instead
$
%
%
Compare Over
After 10 years, you'd be better off
BUYING by $192,758
BUYING — net position
$582,709
RENTING + INVESTING — net position
$389,951
In this scenario, renting is cheaper than owning, so the renter invests the difference each year on top of their deposit — which is how renting can build serious wealth when invested with discipline.
Wealth over time
Buying — total wealth$582,709
Renting — total wealth$389,951
Buying overtakes renting around year 2 in this scenario.
What you'd pay either way
Total rent paid over the period
$387,479
Total spent owning (repayments + costs)
$449,835
How we got there
Buying — ends with $582,709
Property value after 10 years (at 4.0% growth): $1,110,183
Less loan still owing: −$527,474
Less selling costs: −$0
= Home equity: $582,709
Buyer’s total wealth: $582,709
Renting + investing — ends with $389,951
Started by investing the deposit ($150,000) that the buyer put into the house
Grown at 7.0%, plus any surplus invested in years renting cost less than owning
Renter’s total wealth: $389,951
Over the period you paid about $387,479 in rent vs $449,835 in repayments + ownership costs. Both paths are measured by the wealth you’d hold at the end, starting from the same money.
How this works: We assume your stamp duty and buying costs are added to the loan (so your loan = property price + buying costs − deposit), which is how most rent-vs-buy calculators model it. Buying is scored on your net position if you sold at the end of the period: your property's grown value, minus the loan still owing, minus selling costs — plus any surplus you could invest in years owning costs less than renting. Renting is scored as the wealth you'd build if you invested your deposit up front and kept investing the difference whenever renting is cheaper than owning each year, earning your chosen investment return. Whichever ends with more money wins. This is an estimate built on assumptions you control; small changes to growth, rent or investment-return rates can flip the result, so try a few scenarios. It does not account for tax (negative gearing, capital gains tax, or investment tax), lifestyle factors, or the security and freedom-to-renovate of owning.
Should I rent or buy?
It's one of the biggest financial decisions you'll make, and the honest answer is: it depends on your assumptions. This calculator compares both paths fairly over a time period you choose. Buying is measured by your net position if you sold at the end — your property's grown value minus the loan still owing and all the costs you paid along the way. Renting is measured by how much wealth you'd build if you invested your deposit and buying costs instead, kept investing whenever renting is cheaper, and earned an investment return.
Why the result can flip
Small changes to a few key numbers can completely change the answer, which is why it's worth trying several scenarios:
Time horizon — buying usually wins over long periods because purchase costs are spread out and capital growth compounds. Short stays often favour renting.
Capital growth vs investment return — if you expect property to grow faster than share-market returns, buying looks better, and vice versa.
Buying costs — stamp duty and purchase costs are a large upfront hit that renting avoids.
Rent vs repayment gap — if renting is much cheaper than owning, the renter has more to invest each year.
What this calculator does not include
To stay honest: this tool doesn't model tax (negative gearing, capital gains tax, or tax on investment returns), and it can't price the non-financial value of owning — security, stability, and the freedom to renovate — or the flexibility of renting. Treat the result as one important input, not the whole decision.
Assumptions & What's Not Included
This compares the long-run cost of renting versus buying. Its assumptions:
Assumed growth & rates — results depend heavily on the home-price growth, rent growth, and investment-return rates you enter. Small changes to these produce very different outcomes.
Buying costs — it includes core purchase and ownership costs, but exact stamp duty, LMI, conveyancing, building insurance, strata, and maintenance vary by state and property and may be simplified.
Opportunity cost — the deposit and cost difference are assumed invested at the return rate you set when renting, to make a fair comparison.
Fixed assumptions over time — interest rates, rent increases, and growth are treated as steady annual rates, not real-world volatility.
Not included — capital gains tax nuances, negative gearing, transaction costs on selling, and lifestyle factors are not modelled.
Rent-vs-buy is sensitive to your assumptions and personal circumstances. Treat the result as a scenario, not a prediction.
Worked example
As an illustration: a $700,000 home with a $140,000 deposit at 6% over 30 years, 4% yearly capital growth, versus renting at $600/week with the deposit invested at 7% — compared over 10 years.
Property price / deposit
$700,000 / $140,000
Loan
6%, 30 years
Capital growth
4% a year
Rent
$600 / week
Investment return if renting
7% a year
Compared over
10 years
What it tells you: After 10 years the calculator compares your net wealth if you buy (the home’s grown value minus the loan and selling costs) against renting and investing the difference. Small changes to growth, rent or investment-return rates can flip the result, so it’s worth trying a few scenarios rather than trusting one.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it better to rent or buy a house?
It depends on how long you stay, how fast property grows compared to investment returns, and your upfront buying costs. Buying tends to win over long time horizons because costs are spread out and capital growth compounds, while renting can win over shorter periods or when investment returns outpace property growth. This calculator lets you test your own assumptions.
Does the calculator account for investing my deposit if I rent?
Yes. The renting path assumes you invest your deposit and buying costs upfront, then invest any additional savings in years where renting is cheaper than owning, growing at the investment return rate you choose. That money is then compared against the equity you would have built by buying.
Does it include stamp duty and selling costs?
Yes. You can enter your stamp duty and buying costs as an upfront amount, and selling costs as a percentage applied when the property is sold at the end of the period. Both are important because they are large costs that renting avoids.
Is this calculator private? Do you store my data?
Yes, it is completely private. Every calculation runs locally in your browser, so the figures you enter are never sent to a server, never stored, and never shared. There are no accounts and no sign-up.
CalcEezy is a free collection of financial calculators built to help you make quick, informed decisions about loans, savings, and investments.
Every calculation runs entirely in your browser using standard financial formulas — the same ones used in spreadsheet software. Nothing is sent to a server, so your numbers stay completely private and the tools even work offline.
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