Rent vs buy calculator
Am I better off buying this home or renting it and investing the difference?
Buyer ₹95.61 L vs renter ₹1.12 Cr · buying never pulls ahead within the horizon
Net worth by year
How this is calculated
Rules checked against their sources on 29 September 2026. Tax year FY2026-27.
Why the usual answer is wrong in both directions
"Rent is money thrown away" ignores the interest, stamp duty, maintenance and the return the down payment could earn. "Buying is a bad investment" ignores that rent rises every year for life and that a paid-off home is rent-free housing in retirement. The only fair comparison is the same home, the same years, every cash flow on both sides, and the renter investing every rupee the buyer spends that the renter does not.
What goes into each side
Buying. The down payment and the purchase costs up front: stamp duty of 4% to 7% depending on state and gender, registration, brokerage. Then the EMI, society maintenance, property tax and upkeep, all rising. At the end, the home's value at your assumed appreciation less 1% to 2% to sell, less whatever is still owed.
Renting. Rent, rising 5% to 8% a year in most Indian cities. Every month the renter pays less than the owner, the difference is invested; the up-front money is invested from day one.
The calculator runs this month by month and reports both net worths at the horizon and the first year buying pulls ahead, if it does.
The two numbers that decide it
Appreciation. Indian residential property has averaged 5% to 7% a year over long periods with long flat stretches; the decade to 2020 was near zero in real terms in many cities. At 5% buying usually needs ten years or more to pull ahead; at 8% it wins quickly; at 3% it may never.
The renter's return. A renter who spends the difference instead of investing it loses the comparison automatically. At 10% to 12% invested, renting is competitive in most cities where the price is more than 25 to 30 times the annual rent.
What the numbers cannot tell you
Owning gives stability, freedom to renovate, and rent-free shelter after the loan ends; renting gives mobility, no maintenance, and no concentration of your net worth in one asset in one city. The tax rules cut both ways (24(b) and 80C for the owner, HRA for the renter) and are left out here, as is capital-gains tax on sale.
How this fits a retirement plan
A home is the largest asset most households own and the one they cannot spend. A plan carries the loan, the maintenance, the property's value and, if you choose, its eventual sale, and tells you whether the rest of your money lasts around it.
Questions people ask
- What is a fair rent-to-price ratio?
- Divide the price by the annual rent. Under 20, buying tends to win; 20 to 30 is close and depends on appreciation and your return; above 30, which is common in Mumbai, Bengaluru and Delhi, renting and investing usually wins on the numbers.
- Which appreciation rate should I use?
- Long-run Indian residential appreciation has been 5% to 7% nominal with long flat periods; the retirement planner's default is what this page starts with. Use a lower number for an older building or an oversupplied micro-market.
- Are stamp duty and registration included?
- Yes, as one all-in percentage of the price, defaulting to 7%. Rates vary by state and by the buyer's gender: Maharashtra charges 5% for men and 4% for women plus a capped registration fee; Karnataka about 5%. Brokerage of 1% to 2% is common on resale.
- What about HRA and the home-loan deduction?
- Both are left out. The renter's HRA exemption and the owner's 24(b) and 80C deductions apply only in the old regime and roughly offset each other for many taxpayers; the income-tax and HRA calculators on this site put numbers on each.
- Does the model include selling the home?
- It values the home at the horizon less a selling cost, so both sides are compared as if liquidated on the same day. Capital-gains tax on the sale (12.5% long-term, with Section 54 relief if you buy another home) is not deducted.
Want the whole picture?
A free Eazyretire plan puts this number next to your income, savings and spending and tells you whether your money lasts to the age you plan for, and what to change if it will not.