Should I Get a House?
Finance and crypto
rent vs buy calculator
SHOW HN2021
203points
410comments
#227of 2,533 in 2021
Top 9%of 2021 by points
How HN took it
CuriousMostly questions and neutral comments
2 positive, 39 neutral or asking, 4 mixed, 20 critical, out of 65 comments about the project. Thread score -0.33.
Idea: 1 for, 14 againstExecution: 1 for, 5 againstPricing: 0 for, 1 against
The thread, comment by comment
Each row is a top-level comment and its replies, in HN's order. Select a cell to open that comment on HN.
positive neutral or mixed critical about another commenter or something else the maker
What HN said
What people liked
Useful, better than existing calculators
From 3 comments
Thanks for posting - this is really helpful (reminds me of this similar NYT tool: https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2014/upshot/buy-rent-calculator.html) A few notes: - "Final…
cmpolis on HNThis would be better if it included a slider for what yearly investment return you would expect for assets not in a house. If I don't spend my down-payment on a house, I'll put…
dynm on HNBased on checking a 500k house with a 50k down payment, this tells me PMI will be about 2k/year for the first 3 years. Is it really that cheap? Is there any reason to not go for…
silicon2401 on HN
Objections
Ignores opportunity cost of investing the down payment
From 4 comments
Maybe I am just missing it, but I don't see how this factors in the fact that you could invest the same money in the market.
sly010 on HNThis doesn't consider the opportunity cost of having more money now for other investments. Say an index fund or what have you. That's fine but I don't think the rent vs. buy…
tsujp on HNIgnores opportunity cost of having invested cashflow difference in assets of comparable risk
j-sizz on HNThis is a neat tool! There’s one more feature I’d want before using it seriously, which is a field for stock market return rate. If my down payment is 50,000, then in the rental…
c4m on HN
Maintenance budget default of $2500 is too low
From 1 comment
Anyone have luck with that default $2500 maintenance budget? My lawn guy is basically that whole budget. Any service call is $500 minimum. I’ve replaced roofs, siding, HVAC…
conductr on HN
PMI removal logic is inaccurate
From 1 comment
This looks great! A couple of comments: - some (large?) portion of mortgages will not allow PMI to be removed until you either a) inject cash to get to 20% equity or b) get to…
runako on HN
Inflation handling ignores house prices
From 1 comment
House prices are not included in inflation estimates, rental prices are. That's another thing that should be considered.
pestatije on HN
Requests
Add stock market return rate input
From 2 comments
This would be better if it included a slider for what yearly investment return you would expect for assets not in a house. If I don't spend my down-payment on a house, I'll put…
dynm on HNThis is a neat tool! There’s one more feature I’d want before using it seriously, which is a field for stock market return rate. If my down payment is 50,000, then in the rental…
c4m on HN
Add rent growth factor
From 2 comments
This looks great! A couple of comments: - some (large?) portion of mortgages will not allow PMI to be removed until you either a) inject cash to get to 20% equity or b) get to…
runako on HNadd a rent-increase rate. most landlords bump rent every signing.
ruined on HN
Clearer labels such as Apartment and House and Final Cumulative Profit
From 2 comments
"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…
gus_massa on HNThanks for posting - this is really helpful (reminds me of this similar NYT tool: https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2014/upshot/buy-rent-calculator.html) A few notes: - "Final…
cmpolis on HN
Questions
Does the tool account for intangible or lifestyle factors
From 2 comments
Where do I enter the intangible value of owning: "Don't have to worry about getting priced out if the neighborhood becomes popular; can do any improvements I want, when I want,…
drfuchs on HNThere's no way to put this into a calculator, but this decision isn't purely monetary. Do you enjoy having to maintain a home and property? If not, maybe buying a house isn't for…
bachmeier on HN
Alternatives named
NYT rent vs buy calculator
From 2 comments
Mega-Classic from The New York Times: https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2014/upshot/buy-rent-calculator.html A beautiful, in-depth calculator to answer "Is it better to rent or…
yboris on HNThis looks great! For those going through the process, I also found this tool helpful in determining whether to rent vs. buy:…
bechap on HN
Michael Bluejay rent vs buy calculator
From 1 comment
This is a pretty good attempt, but I've yet to find a calculator that is as comprehensive as this gem. https://michaelbluejay.com/house/rentvsbuy.html The site may not be flashy…
joshfee on HN