Rent vs. Buy: How to Find Your Break-Even Point (2026)
Find your rent-vs-buy break-even year with a worked 2026 scenario and the three levers that most change the result.
Answer five quick questions to seed a baseline comparison.
Rent vs Buy Calculator
Learn more about this calculator
The "rent is throwing money away" trope misses the opportunity cost of the down payment. If you buy, the down payment is locked up in a non-liquid asset earning the appreciation rate. If you rent, the same capital can sit in a 60/40 portfolio earning a different rate. The calculator runs both paths and tells you when buying overtakes renting in total wealth.
Realistically the answer depends on your hold period, your local rent vs price ratio, your interest rate, and the alternative investment return. We model all of them with sane defaults you can override.
What this calculator covers
Use these as a quick scope check before you rely on the output.
- •Total-wealth comparison over your hold period
- •Opportunity-cost modeling for the down payment
- •Rent inflation assumption
- •Closing-cost amortization
- •Break-even hold-period calculation
Frequently asked questions
What hold period makes buying worth it?
In most US markets, 5-7 years is the typical break-even. Below that, transaction costs (agent fees, closing) eat the gain. The calculator gives you a specific number for your inputs.
Does this work for high-cost-of-living cities?
Yes — and HCOL markets often have unfavorable rent vs price ratios that push the break-even out to 8-10+ years. Worth running before committing.
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