: It counts the massive "sunk costs" of buying, such as the initial down payment, closing costs, and the 5% to 6% agent commissions you pay when you eventually sell.
: It pulls active market data to compare an identical tier of properties (e.g., comparing a 2-bedroom rental against the purchase price of a similar 2-bedroom condo). trulia's rent vs buy
: This is the tool's secret sauce. It assumes that if you didn't dump your cash into a down payment and closing costs, you would have invested it elsewhere. Trulia's default assumes a baseline return on that capital, adjusting the final "savings" accordingly. Rent vs Buy Calculator - Trulia : It counts the massive "sunk costs" of
Most basic calculators only compare a monthly rent check to a monthly mortgage payment. Trulia’s model—developed and iterated upon by its economic research team—uses a multi-step net present value (NPV) calculation to account for the opportunity cost of your money. The engine weighs five distinct pillars: It assumes that if you didn't dump your