Singapore
Singapore Rent vs buy calculator
Renting or buying is one of the biggest money questions most people face, and the honest answer turns on how long you stay put. This tool puts real numbers behind the choice. Enter the price of the home, your deposit, the mortgage rate and term, the rent you would otherwise pay, and the years you expect to stay. It works out what each path actually costs over that period and tells you which comes out ahead, and by how much. The result strips away the part of a mortgage payment that builds equity, because that money comes back to you when you sell, and compares only the money that is genuinely spent: interest, fees and upkeep on one side, rent on the other.
Buying cost counts mortgage interest, one-off buying and selling fees and yearly upkeep. Your deposit and the principal you repay are treated as equity you get back, assuming flat house prices. Rising prices favour buying; a short stay or falling prices favour renting.
How it works
- Enter the home price and your deposit. The difference is the mortgage you would borrow.
- Set the mortgage rate and term, the monthly rent for a similar home, and how many years you plan to stay.
- The tool adds up the mortgage interest you pay over those years, the one-off buying and selling fees, and the yearly upkeep.
- It treats your deposit and the loan principal you repay as equity you recover when you sell, so they are not counted as a cost.
- It then compares that net cost of owning against the total rent over the same years and shows which is cheaper.
Net cost of buying = mortgage interest + buying and selling fees + upkeep; cost of renting = monthly rent x 12 x years
A mortgage payment splits into interest, which is gone for good, and principal, which pays down the loan and turns into equity you own. Because that equity comes back when you sell (assuming the home holds its value), only the interest counts as a true cost of borrowing. Add the fees you pay to buy and later sell, plus the upkeep an owner carries that a tenant does not, and you have the real price of owning over the period. Renting is quicker to total: the monthly rent multiplied by the months you stay. Comparing the two on flat prices isolates the question of which is cheaper before any bet on the housing market.
- interest
- mortgage interest paid over the years you stay
- fees
- one-off buying and selling costs, a percent of the price
- upkeep
- yearly maintenance and insurance an owner pays
- rent x 12 x years
- total rent paid over the same period
Rules of thumb people use
| Break-even time to buy | about 5 years | longer where fees are high |
| Typical buying costs | 2 to 5% of price | tax, legal, survey, mortgage fees |
| Selling costs | 1 to 3% of price | agent and legal fees |
| Annual upkeep | 1% of price | a common maintenance estimate |
Worked example
A 300,000 home with a 60,000 deposit, a 5 percent mortgage over 25 years, against rent of 1,300 a month, staying 5 years: the mortgage interest over five years is about 56,800, buying and selling fees at 4 percent add 12,000, and upkeep at 1 percent a year adds 15,000, so owning costs roughly 83,800. Five years of rent at 1,300 a month is 78,000. On flat house prices renting is cheaper here by about 5,800, but even modest price growth would tip it the other way.
Key facts
- Most of a mortgage payment in the early years is interest, not principal, so the equity you build at first is small.
- Buying and selling a home carries large one-off costs, which is why a short stay usually favours renting.
- House price growth is the biggest swing factor and is left out here so you can judge the rest on its own.
- Renting frees up the deposit, which could earn a return elsewhere; that opportunity cost is not counted in this simple model.
Tips
- Be honest about how long you will really stay; the shorter the time, the harder it is for buying to win.
- Get quotes for the actual buying fees in your area rather than guessing, since they vary widely.
- If you expect to move within two or three years, renting is very often the cheaper and more flexible choice.
- Compare like with like: the rent and the mortgage should be for homes you would actually be happy living in.
Frequently asked questions
Does buying always beat renting in the long run?+
No. Over a long enough stay and with rising prices it often does, but a short stay, high transaction fees, heavy upkeep or falling prices can all make renting cheaper. The length of time you stay is usually the deciding factor.
Why is the deposit not counted as a cost?+
Your deposit becomes equity in the home, money you get back when you sell. It is a transfer of cash into an asset, not money spent, so counting it would double-count against the equity you recover.
What about house prices going up?+
This calculator assumes flat prices on purpose, to compare the running costs cleanly. If prices rise, the gain belongs to the owner and tips the result toward buying; if they fall, it tips toward renting.
Is mortgage interest really wasted money?+
Interest is the price of borrowing and does not build equity, so in a cost comparison it sits alongside rent as money spent. Principal is different, since it pays down what you owe and turns into equity.
Should I include the return on investing my deposit?+
For a fuller picture, yes. A renter can invest the deposit and any monthly saving, and the return on that can be large. This model leaves it out to keep the comparison clear, so treat the result as a starting point rather than the last word.
Things to watch
- This model assumes flat house prices; real gains or losses can easily outweigh every other figure here.
- It leaves out the return you could earn by investing the deposit instead, which favours renting where markets are strong.
- Service charges, ground rent and major repairs on a flat can push upkeep well above the 1 percent default.
Last updated: 2026
This is an estimate for general guidance, not financial, tax, legal or medical advice. Figures can change and individual circumstances vary. Always confirm with the official sources listed before making decisions.
Reviewed by Vikas Dulgunde.