Is it better to rent or buy?

It depends on how long you stay, the price, local rents, interest rates and what you would do with the money instead. Buying tends to win the longer you hold, once the purchase costs are recovered, while renting and investing the difference can win over shorter periods. The calculator compares both for your numbers.

Does the comparison include stamp duty?

It has to, to be fair. Stamp duty and loan and buying costs are real money that renting avoids, which is why buying usually takes some years to come out ahead. The calculator factors these in.

How many years until buying beats renting?

There is no fixed number. It turns on your price, deposit, interest rate and local rents. The calculator shows the crossover point for your own situation.

Rent vs buy in Australia: how to decide

Property › Introduction

"Rent money is dead money" is the line everyone grows up with, but it's not that simple. Buying has its own big costs that don't build any equity either. What counts is your total net worth in each scenario after several years, not rent versus mortgage.

The costs people forget on the buying side

A mortgage repayment isn't the whole cost of owning. A few big ones sit either side of it and rarely make it into the back-of-envelope version:

Upfront.Stamp duty, legal and inspection fees, often 4-6% of the price, gone the day you buy.

Ongoing.Council rates, insurance, maintenance and (for units) strata, commonly around 1% of the property's value every year, none of which builds equity.

Interest.In the early years of a mortgage, most of your repayment is interest, not principal.

Selling.Agent commission and legals when you eventually sell.

The cost people forget on the renting side

The renter's hidden advantage is the deposit they didn't spend. A buyer sinks, say, $140,000 plus costs into a house; a renter can invest that money instead, plus any month where renting is cheaper than owning.

Over years, invested and compounding, that pot is real wealth, and it's the thing a naïve "rent is dead money" comparison ignores.

The number that flips the answer

Two levers decide it: how long you'll stay, and whether property grows faster than your investments would.

Lever one

How long you'll stay

Buying needs time to earn back those big upfront costs. Sell after 2-3 years and you often come out behind. Stay 10+ years and rising property value plus a shrinking loan usually pull ahead.

Lever two

Property growth vs investment growth

If you assume house prices grow faster than your investments would, buying wins sooner. Flip that assumption and renting-and-investing can win instead.

What the numbers can't price

Owning buys you security and the freedom to renovate. Renting hands you flexibility, and none of the maintenance bills or rate stress. The financial comparison is only half the decision, but it's the half most people guess at instead of working out.

The bottom line

Neither side is automatically "dead money": buying carries costs that don't build equity either, and renting carries an opportunity most people never invest. Run the actual numbers for your price, deposit, rent and how long you'd stay, and let the break-even year, not the slogan, decide.

Run your own comparison

Put in your price, deposit, rent and how long you'd stay, and it builds both net-worth paths and shows the break-even year.

Rent vs buy calculator →

General information only, not financial advice. Figures are illustrative and won't match your own circumstances; check current rates and costs before deciding.