Show HN: Should I Get a House? a better rent vs. buy calculator
shouldigetahouse.com
Show HN: Should I Get a House? a better rent vs. buy calculator
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Re: Show HN: Should I Get a House? a better rent vs. buy calculator
#2My wife wants to buy a house, but I'm unable to make life decisions without trying to minmax them. I wasn't satisfied with existing rent vs. buy calculators, so I decided to build my own! I'm not a developer, so I apologize if it's a little rough looking...
Some things it takes into account:
- The actual rate of return on your down payment and extra costs of a house
- Inflation
- Itemized deductions on your taxes
- The impact of state taxes
- Mortgage interest deduction limit and SALT tax deduction limit
Re: Show HN: Should I Get a House? a better rent vs. buy calculator
#3My wife wants to buy a house, but I'm unable to make life decisions without trying to minmax them. I wasn't satisfied with existing rent vs. buy calculators, so I decided to build my own! I'm not a developer, so I apologize if it's a little rough looking... Some things it takes into account: - The actual rate of return on your down payment and extra costs of a house - Inflation - Itemized deductions on your taxes - T…
this is great!!
The final cashflow amount of the house graph (in the example) ends in the negative, s this accurate?
Re: Show HN: Should I Get a House? a better rent vs. buy calculator
#4"Apartment" means rent and "House" means buying? I think that's confusing.
It would be nice to auto update the graph every time something changes.
It's nice that it has tips. Hi from Argentina! We have a somewhat different customs here so some fields are hard to guess. For example, I don't know if I can fill my taxes jointly.
Another detail that confused me is that I didn't expect to sell the home after 14 years. It's not usual here, but I guess it changes in each country.
Protip: Add a field that says "My S.O. want's to move anyway" :)
Re: Show HN: Should I Get a House? a better rent vs. buy calculator
#5My wife wants to buy a house, but I'm unable to make life decisions without trying to minmax them. I wasn't satisfied with existing rent vs. buy calculators, so I decided to build my own! I'm not a developer, so I apologize if it's a little rough looking... Some things it takes into account: - The actual rate of return on your down payment and extra costs of a house - Inflation - Itemized deductions on your taxes - T…
this is great!! The final cashflow amount of the house graph (in the example) ends in the negative, s this accurate?
It is accurate! While the house cashflow is negative in the example, it's at least less negative than the apartment cash flow. Maybe the moral of the story is living with your parents for free is better than either option!
Re: Show HN: Should I Get a House? a better rent vs. buy calculator
#6House prices are not included in inflation estimates, rental prices are. That's another thing that should be considered.
Re: Show HN: Should I Get a House? a better rent vs. buy calculator
#7My wife wants to buy a house, but I'm unable to make life decisions without trying to minmax them. I wasn't satisfied with existing rent vs. buy calculators, so I decided to build my own! I'm not a developer, so I apologize if it's a little rough looking... Some things it takes into account: - The actual rate of return on your down payment and extra costs of a house - Inflation - Itemized deductions on your taxes - T…
Probably want to allow for the possibility of rent rises over time.
One thing that I think this actually shows pretty well is the notion that part of the answer depends on how long you intend to stay in a place. If you expect to move in two or three years, it's probably not worth the hassle/expense of buying. If you intend to stay 5+ years in one place, it makes more sense to buy.
Re: Show HN: Should I Get a House? a better rent vs. buy calculator
#8House prices are not included in inflation estimates, rental prices are. That's another thing that should be considered.
There's a separate parameter to control the increase in house prices. My assumption is that houses have tended to increase faster than inflation in most markets.
Re: Show HN: Should I Get a House? a better rent vs. buy calculator
#9Buying is better, if you are thinking a bit long term like 4-5+ Years.
Now, why I said that: Here’s my story - I had lived in an apartment for 5 years. It’s my longest stretch at one place so far. I paid about $100k in rent for all of those years. When I left that place, I got nothing out of it. If I had a house, then I would had built some equity.
Edit: removed - ‘Buying is always better’ from the first sentence
Re: Show HN: Should I Get a House? a better rent vs. buy calculator
#10Buying is better, if you are thinking a bit long term like 4-5+ Years. Now, why I said that: Here’s my story - I had lived in an apartment for 5 years. It’s my longest stretch at one place so far. I paid about $100k in rent for all of those years. When I left that place, I got nothing out of it. If I had a house, then I would had built some equity. Edit: removed - ‘Buying is always better’ from the first sentence
If you are not willing to do at least some DIY repairs, homeownership can become significantly more expensive than renting.