Home Value vs. Market Investment Calculator
Compare buying a home against putting the same starting cash and monthly savings into the market.
Main Assumptions
Home price, expected sale price, financing, and hold period.
Implied appreciation: 1.72% / year
$360,000 cash into property
Monthly mortgage = $8,312
Home value vs. market investment
Market is ahead by $15,224,770 after 30 years.
Transaction & Ownership Costs
Closing costs, sale costs, maintenance, taxes, insurance, and improvements.
$45,000
$0
$0
$180,000
$1,500 / month
$1,650 / month
$300 / month
Rent & Market Investment Alternative
Rent avoided by owning and alternate market return assumptions.
Custom return
Index presets use approximate 30-year annualized historical total-return averages with dividends reinvested. They are planning assumptions, not forecasts.
Ownership cost summary
Today's monthly cash waterfall for the home value path.
This is a current-month comparison.
Year-by-Year Comparison
This shows estimated equity after sale versus the rent-and-invest alternative each year.
| Year | Home Value | Loan Balance | Equity After Sale | Annual Rent | Market Investment | House Advantage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | $1.8M | $1.4M | $252K | $0 | $405K | $0 |
| 1 | $1.8M | $1.4M | $299.9K | $74.4K | $517.3K | -$217.4K |
| 2 | $1.9M | $1.4M | $349.4K | $75.9K | $639.8K | -$290.4K |
| 3 | $1.9M | $1.4M | $400.6K | $77.4K | $773.5K | -$372.9K |
| 4 | $1.9M | $1.4M | $453.6K | $79K | $919.7K | -$466.1K |
| 5 | $2M | $1.3M | $508.3K | $80.5K | $1.1M | -$571.1K |
| 6 | $2M | $1.3M | $565K | $82.1K | $1.3M | -$689.3K |
| 7 | $2M | $1.3M | $623.6K | $83.8K | $1.4M | -$822K |
| 8 | $2.1M | $1.3M | $684.3K | $85.5K | $1.7M | -$971K |
| 9 | $2.1M | $1.2M | $747.3K | $87.2K | $1.9M | -$1.1M |
| 10 | $2.1M | $1.2M | $812.5K | $88.9K | $2.1M | -$1.3M |
| 11 | $2.2M | $1.2M | $880.1K | $90.7K | $2.4M | -$1.5M |
| 12 | $2.2M | $1.1M | $950.2K | $92.5K | $2.7M | -$1.8M |
| 13 | $2.2M | $1.1M | $1M | $94.4K | $3.1M | -$2M |
| 14 | $2.3M | $1M | $1.1M | $96.2K | $3.4M | -$2.3M |
| 15 | $2.3M | $1M | $1.2M | $98.2K | $3.8M | -$2.6M |
| 16 | $2.4M | $963.5K | $1.3M | $100.1K | $4.3M | -$3M |
| 17 | $2.4M | $917K | $1.3M | $102.1K | $4.8M | -$3.4M |
| 18 | $2.4M | $867.8K | $1.4M | $104.2K | $5.3M | -$3.9M |
| 19 | $2.5M | $815.8K | $1.5M | $106.3K | $5.9M | -$4.4M |
| 20 | $2.5M | $760.7K | $1.6M | $108.4K | $6.5M | -$4.9M |
| 21 | $2.6M | $702.4K | $1.7M | $110.6K | $7.2M | -$5.5M |
| 22 | $2.6M | $640.8K | $1.8M | $112.8K | $8M | -$6.2M |
| 23 | $2.7M | $575.6K | $1.9M | $115K | $8.9M | -$7M |
| 24 | $2.7M | $506.6K | $2M | $117.3K | $9.9M | -$7.8M |
| 25 | $2.8M | $433.6K | $2.2M | $119.7K | $10.9M | -$8.8M |
| 26 | $2.8M | $356.4K | $2.3M | $122.1K | $12.1M | -$9.8M |
| 27 | $2.9M | $274.7K | $2.4M | $124.5K | $13.4M | -$10.9M |
| 28 | $2.9M | $188.2K | $2.5M | $127K | $14.8M | -$12.2M |
| 29 | $2.9M | $96.8K | $2.7M | $129.5K | $16.3M | -$13.7M |
| 30 | $3M | $0 | $2.8M | $132.1K | $18M | -$15.2M |
About this home value vs. market calculator
This home value vs. market investment calculator estimates whether a completed or planned home purchase may beat investing the same cash in the market. It compares estimated home equity after selling against a market investment alternative.
The model includes home price, sale price, down payment, mortgage rate, years held, loan term, monthly rent alternative, market return, rent inflation, property taxes, insurance, maintenance, improvements, closing costs, and selling costs.
How to interpret the result
A house advantage means estimated sale proceeds and buyer surplus are ahead. A market advantage means the alternative investment path is estimated to be worth more over the same holding period.
What to verify
Check actual loan amortization, sale proceeds, broker fees, repairs, taxes, insurance, improvements, and the realistic rental alternative for the years being compared.