Rent paid over 10 years
$267,476
Estimated ending monthly rent: $2,680
Rent vs. ownership
What might the ownership path have looked like?
Look backward at the years you have rented or project forward from today. Compare cumulative rent with a hypothetical mortgage balance, property value, principal paydown, and gross home equity.
Example
“I have rented for 10 years. What if I had purchased in 2016?”
Enter the approximate home value and mortgage rate from the starting year, the rent you were paying, and today's comparable home value. The model estimates what the ownership position might look like today.
Rent vs. ownership history
What did renting cost compared with the equity you could have built?
Use this as a look-back calculator or a forward projection. Enter the home value and mortgage rate from the starting year, the rent you paid or expect to pay, and either today's/future home value or an appreciation assumption.
Starting point — years ago
Today's estimated home value
Home value today
$700,000
Value increase: $250,000
Estimated mortgage balance
$319,075
Principal paid: $85,925
Estimated gross home equity
$380,925
Home value less estimated remaining mortgage balance.
What renting cost
$267,476
Estimated cumulative rent paid during the period using the starting rent and annual rent-growth assumptions you entered.
Potential ownership position
$380,925
Estimated gross equity that could exist at the end of the period before selling costs, taxes, transaction expenses, or other ownership considerations.
Important: this is not a claim that buying always beats renting.
This model illustrates a hypothetical ownership path based on the inputs you provide. It does not include every cost or benefit of renting or owning, including tax consequences, investment returns on unused cash, closing costs, selling costs, repairs, insurance changes, tax reassessments, rent concessions, opportunity cost, or market volatility. Historical appreciation does not guarantee future results.