Among real estate-related calculators, one of the most difficult to accurately determine is the rent vs buy calculator, despite tremendous progress among calculators in this regard over the years. Below I'll go through a relatively typical example for Newport News, VA using Nerdwallet's calculator on the subject, & go through some alternatives as well.
Alternatives to NerdWallet's Calculator
Ensure Accuracy for Viable Results
Many Exceptions to the Calculator
Typical Rent or Buy Scenario
Steps to Using the Calculator
1. Determine the monthly price of rent vs the monthly price of a comparable purchase.
1. Example: Comparison of median rented price vs median sold price $268,870 v $1595 for 3 bed 2 bath with a garage in Newport News
2. Determine your interest rate if not provided by your lender already
3. Plug in home price, city, comparable rent price, interest rate, loan term, and your downpayment into the calculator if not wanting to get too granular.
4. More options for higher accuracy
Image courtesy Nerdwallet
Same #s, except with 20% down:
Image courtesy Nerdwallet
Related:
Tenants:
Landlords & Tenants (organized articles)
Tenants (searchable articles in order of publication)
Landlords (searchable articles in order of publication)