How this is worked out
The home you want: buy or rent
Two homes, side by side, until the year you move on.
Price of the home you would buy. The median existing home was US$396,800 in January 2026 (National Association of Realtors).
Rent a month of the home you would rent. The typical US rent was US$1,962 in July 2026 (Zillow), the figure the other rent and buy pages start from. That covers all rentals, mostly apartments; a comparable house often rents for more.
Years until you move on. The typical owner stays 11 years (National Association of Realtors, 2025).
Mortgage rate. 30-year fixed, Freddie Mac, October 8, 2026.
Down payment. Under 20% adds mortgage insurance.
State. Sets the property tax to that state’s median rate (Census, 2024).
Tax return. Counts the income tax saved by deducting mortgage interest and property tax (2026 federal rules).
Buying costs. Of the price: title, lender fees, points.
Selling costs. Of the sale price: agents, transfer taxes.
What invested money earns a year. After tax. Whoever pays less each year invests the difference.
Buying and renting, side by side. Each year the owner pays the loan, property tax, insurance (0.5% of the value), upkeep (1.5%) and any mortgage insurance; the renter pays rent and renter’s insurance (US$180). Whoever pays less invests the difference at the same return, and the renter also invests the cash the buyer spent on day one. Income tax and refinancing are left out unless you turn on itemizing. All-in cost is everything you pay while living there plus the day-one cash, less what comes back on the sale; it does not count what the money could earn, and the wealth line does.
Your answer in words. If you move on after 8 years: buying the US$396,800 home costs you US$208,496 all in (what you paid, less what you get back when you sell), and renting the US$1,962-a-month home costs US$214,553. Buying costs less by US$6,057. Counting what the money could earn, the buyer would have US$205,067 and the renter US$281,479. Buying does not come out ahead within 40 years.
Some choices came from your profile.
US inflation 3.4% (August 2026, US Bureau of Labor Statistics)
How every calculator on the site is built, and what changed and when, is on How it works.