Rent vs Buy Calculator Canada

Compare renting and buying over your full mortgage period, including the opportunity cost of investing the down payment and monthly savings.

Rent versus buy is a time-horizon question.

Buying builds equity, but it also adds closing costs, selling costs, mortgage interest, insurance, maintenance, property tax, and repair risk.

Renting buys flexibility. The financial comparison changes if the renter invests the down payment, closing costs, and monthly ownership gap.

Use this calculator with the Mortgage & Home Buying Hub, closing costs guide, and minimum down payment guide before deciding what price range to test.

Where and how long

If you rent

If you buy

Ownership costs

Rent vs buy after 25 years

Renting is ahead

After 25 years, renting and investing leaves you with about $706,446 more net worth in this scenario.

Rent + invest net worth$2,018,168
Buy net worth$1,311,722
Break-evenNot within 25 yrs
Monthly rent (year 1)$1,625
Monthly ownership (year 1)$4,662
Monthly mortgage payment$3,508

What this means

Renting is ahead here mainly because the renter invests the down payment and any monthly savings. It does not mean renting is always better — the assumptions you entered favour renting over this period.

Cumulative net worth

Renting vs buying over 25 years

Rent + investBuy
$0$1.3M$2.5M$3.8M$5.0M0510152025

Buy net worth is home equity after selling costs. Rent + invest net worth is the down payment, closing costs, and monthly savings invested at your assumed return. Hover to inspect any year.

If you rent for 25 years

Total rent paid$653,300
Down payment invested instead$81,250
Investment balance at year end$2,018,168
Rent + invest net worth$2,018,168

If you buy for 25 years

Total mortgage interest$449,224
Total unrecoverable owner costs$514,707
Estimated selling costs$49,233
Home equity after selling costs$1,311,722
Buy net worth$1,311,722
Assumptions and sources

Minimum down payment and mortgage insurance follow Canadian insured-mortgage rules and are estimates. Verify with CMHC, Sagen, Canada Guaranty, or your lender.

Land transfer / registration estimates are modelled for BC, Ontario, Toronto, and Alberta. Other provinces use the editable closing-cost estimate.

The comparison invests the renter's down payment, closing costs, and monthly savings at your assumed return, so it is not just a payment-versus-rent comparison.

Note: Mortgage insurance is likely required because the down payment is below 20%. Verify with CMHC, Sagen, Canada Guaranty, or your lender.

Note: Rent growth can be affected by provincial rules, property type, turnover, and market conditions.

What does rent versus buy compare?

Rent versus buy compares two uses of the same household money over time. Buying turns a down payment and mortgage principal into home equity while adding transaction and ownership costs, whereas renting preserves flexibility and can leave the down payment and monthly cost difference available to invest.

After 25 years, the renting-and-investing path reaches $2,018,168 of modeled net worth and the buying path reaches $1,311,722. Renting and investing leads by $706,446 in this scenario. Stress-test the decision with a shorter stay, slower home appreciation, higher ownership costs, and a lower investment return because a narrow winner can reverse when one long-term assumption changes.

How the comparison works

It compares the net worth path of buying with renting and investing the cash that would otherwise go into the down payment, closing costs, and ownership-cost gap, modelling mortgage balance, home value, selling costs, rent growth, investment growth, and recurring ownership costs.

Run cautious examples

Try one base case, one higher-rate case, and one lower-home-growth case. A five-year owner with high transaction costs can look very different from a ten-year owner with stable costs. If you would not actually invest the renter surplus, lower the investment return.

What to verify

Confirm current mortgage rates, insurance premiums, property tax, condo fees, maintenance, land transfer tax, and selling commissions. Small differences in recurring ownership costs can shift the break-even year more than the headline mortgage payment.

Frequently asked questions

Is renting always worse than buying?

No. Renting can be better in some scenarios, especially when buying has high transaction costs, ownership costs, or a short time horizon. Buying can be better when home equity growth outweighs those costs.

Is renting throwing away money?

Not necessarily. Rent pays for housing and flexibility. The financial question is whether the renter also invests the cash that would have gone into a down payment, closing costs, and higher monthly ownership costs. If that money is not invested, the comparison can change a lot.

Why does the calculator invest the down payment for renters?

A down payment is money that could otherwise be invested. The calculator includes that opportunity cost so renting is compared against buying more fairly.

What costs are included when buying a home?

The estimate includes mortgage payments, interest, property tax, insurance, maintenance, condo fees, utilities differences, mortgage insurance, closing costs, and selling costs where selected.

What is the break-even point?

The break-even point is the first year when buying net worth catches or passes renting and investing net worth under your assumptions.

Are land transfer taxes included?

BC, Ontario, Toronto, and Alberta registration-style estimates are included. Other provinces should use the editable closing cost estimate until more rules are added.

How should I stress-test the result?

Start by changing one assumption at a time: mortgage rate, rent growth, home appreciation, investment return, time horizon, and selling cost. The sensitivity is often more useful than the base result.

What if I might move in a few years?

Use a shorter time horizon and include selling costs. Buying can be harder to justify if you may move before equity growth has time to overcome closing and selling costs.

What if I am buying with a partner?

Use the combined down payment, income, and costs only if both people will share the purchase. Also test whether one income could carry the home for a short period.

What if I would not invest the renter savings?

Set the investment return lower or run a cash-savings scenario. Renting looks better only if the down payment and monthly ownership gap are saved or invested instead of spent.

See also

Practical pathways

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