Renting or buying: the cheaper one depends on how long you stay. Rent vs buy in Germany: compare the true cost of renting and buying over the years you'd stay, with buying and selling costs, interest, upkeep and price growth. See when buying starts to win.
Costs on top of the price
€22,600
Any buyer · Bavaria 3.5% ·
What do you want to work out?
Whether renting or buying works out cheaper over the years you'd stay.
Over 7 years, buying works out cheaper by about
Rent paid
€107,581True cost of buying
€102,396Home worth in 7 years
€475,474Interest paid
€68,573Buying and selling costs
€40,374Yours after selling
€216,639True cost of buying = buying costs, interest, upkeep and selling costs, plus what your €122,600 deposit and costs could have earned as savings, minus the rise in the home's value. Mortgage repayments that pay off the loan aren't a cost: they come back to you when you sell. Assumes prices rise 2.5% and rents 3.0% a year (over past 5-year periods, prices in Germany typically rose 2.5% a year; we cap our starting figure at 3% to stay cautious); change these under "Rates, price growth and upkeep".
An illustration, not financial advice. Prices can fall as well as rise, and rates, rents and taxes change.
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Questions
It depends mostly on how long you stay. With our starting figures for a €400,000 home, buying works out cheaper over 7 years. Buying and selling costs are paid once, so the longer you stay, the more buying tends to win. Change the rent, years and growth above to test your own case.
Any buyer in Bavaria 3.5%: property transfer tax is about €14,000. All buying costs together come to about €22,600, or 5.7% of the price. Change the price or buyer type above to see your own figure.
No. Foreign buyers pay the same purchase taxes as local buyers in Germany. Some rules on who can buy, or which rate applies, can still depend on where you live.
No limits on foreign buyers, and the same transfer tax.
A notary (Notar) to draw up and sign the contract. A German bank account is usually expected.
We last updated the figures on 14 Oct 2026 and checked them against official sources on 14 Oct 2026. We check every country every week, and show a warning if a check is overdue.
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