Should I rent or buy?
Buy if: (1) you'll stay 5+ years, (2) total monthly cost is similar to rent, (3) you have 3+ months reserves after down payment, (4) you can stomach maintenance costs (1-2% of home value annually). Otherwise, rent and invest the difference. Run the numbers — many situations make renting clearly better.
More context
Buy if: (1) you'll stay 5+ years, (2) total monthly cost is similar to rent, (3) you have 3+ months reserves after down payment, (4) you can stomach maintenance costs (1-2% of home value annually). Otherwise, rent and invest the difference. Run the numbers — many situations make renting clearly better. The exact answer depends on your specific situation — the numbers above are a strong starting point, but the right next step is to plug in your actual figures.
For a deeper analysis, use one of the related tools below — they take your specific income, debt, location, and goals as inputs and produce a tailored answer.