Renting or buying: the cheaper one depends on how long you stay. Rent vs buy in the United States: 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
US$12,450
Home buyer · Typical (most states) ·
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
US$199,531True cost of buying
US$148,264Home worth in 7 years
US$491,950Interest paid
US$130,530Buying and selling costs
US$43,507Yours after selling
US$189,644True cost of buying = buying costs, interest, upkeep and selling costs, plus what your US$112,450 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 3.0% and rents 3.0% a year (over past 5-year periods, prices in the United States typically rose 5.5% 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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Reach people working out the cost of buying in the United StatesFor lawyers, brokers, surveyors and agents serving the United States. Shown only on these pages, labelled as sponsored.Where are you buying?
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Questions
It depends mostly on how long you stay. With our starting figures for a US$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.
Home buyer in Typical (most states): closing costs come to about US$12,000. All buying costs together come to about US$12,450, or 3.1% 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 United States. Some rules on who can buy, or which rate applies, can still depend on where you live.
Most states have no limits. Some limit buyers from certain countries, mostly for farmland or land near military sites. When you sell, up to 15% of the price may be held back for tax (FIRPTA) if you're not US resident.
An ITIN or Social Security number for a mortgage and tax. A US closing attorney or title company.
We last updated the figures on 14 Oct 2026 and checked them against official sources on 23 Oct 2026. We check every country every week, and show a warning if a check is overdue.
Guides
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