Rent vs Buy in 2026
A data-driven breakdown comparing renting and buying over a 5-year horizon.
Homeowner Financial Decision Engine
Plan your next home decision with numbers you can explain.
SmartCalcs helps homeowners model monthly payments, long-term costs, and break-even timelines with no bank login, privacy-first workflows, export-ready summaries, and optional AI explanations.
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Used by 12,000 homeowners monthly (placeholder)
What makes this different
Decision flow built for homeowners, not just isolated calculators.
Step 1
Pick your goal: buying, refinancing, or lowering monthly bills.
Step 2
Run curated calculators in sequence with shared assumptions.
Step 3
Export results or use AI Explain for plain-English decision notes.
Smart Start
Choose your goal and get a recommended path
Start with the flow that matches your decision. Each path takes about 3-7 minutes.
3-6 min
What you'll learn: Monthly payment, full ownership cost, and affordability range.
Home Affordability
Estimate max monthly housing payment and home price from DTI and income constraints.
Mortgage Payment
Monthly P&I, full payment estimate, and amortization summary for homeowners.
Home Cost 30-Year
Estimate 5-year, 10-year, and 30-year ownership costs with a practical component breakdown.
Recommended guide
How Much House Can I Afford? →Decision Highlights
Results that feel premium, not overwhelming
Fast read on monthly payment, long-horizon cost, and early equity trajectory.
Monthly payment
$2,847
$580,000 loan · 6.75% APR · 30-year fixed
30-year interest$442,000
Total paid (P&I)$1,022,000
Year-5 equity (est.)$48,000
Payment mix preview
Principal$610
Interest$3,263
Tax + insurance$374
Assumptions
Illustrative values only. Taxes, insurance, HOA, PMI rules, and actual lender pricing vary by location, credit profile, property details, and timing.
Top Money Calculators
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Mortgage Payment
Estimate principal, interest, taxes, insurance, and HOA in one monthly view.
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Home Affordability
Translate household income and debts into a realistic price ceiling.
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Rent vs Buy
Compare 5-year and 10-year costs with equity and opportunity cost assumptions.
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Refinance Break-Even
Find when monthly savings may recover closing costs.
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Mortgage Points
Check whether paying points upfront may save enough over your time horizon.
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PMI Drop-Off Calculator
Estimate when private mortgage insurance can be removed and how much you'll pay.
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HELOC vs Cash-Out Refi
Compare payment, 5-year interest, and structure differences side-by-side.
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Home Cost 30-Year
Project ownership costs across 5, 10, and 30 years with key assumptions.
Open calculator →Free PDF
Get the 2026 Home Cost Survival Checklist (PDF)
A concise planning checklist covering mortgage, taxes, insurance, HOA, utilities, and maintenance assumptions before you commit.
Optional
Check today's mortgage rates
If you're rate-shopping, this link opens a third-party rate page.
See mortgage rates
Disclosure: We may earn a commission from partner links. This does not affect calculator outputs or assumptions.
Latest Guides
Keep your assumptions sharp before you commit
How Much House Can I Afford in 2026
A realistic breakdown of income, debt, and true housing cost.
When to Refinance in 2026
Break-even math, closing costs, timing rules, and a step-by-step checklist.
Texas Closing Costs 2026
State-specific breakdown of buyer and seller costs in Texas.
Florida Closing Costs 2026
State-specific breakdown of buyer and seller costs in Florida.
California Closing Costs 2026
State-specific breakdown of buyer and seller closing costs in California.
Community
Build confidence with peer signal and product direction
Reviews and roadmap input are informational and community-driven. Calculator outputs remain deterministic estimates, not financial, legal, or tax advice.
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Trust and methodology
SmartCalcs is for informational estimates. We show assumptions and limitations so you can compare options with clear context before speaking with a lender, CPA, attorney, insurer, or contractor.
How we calculate
Formulas are deterministic and calculator-specific. Inputs and outputs are transparent, and page-level disclosures explain where real-world quotes can differ.
Privacy
Core calculations run client-side. We only store email when you submit lead forms.