Zum Inhalt springen

Free tool

Should you rent or buy?

Put the same home side by side: bought with a mortgage, or rented while the money you'd have put down is invested. See which leaves you better off, and from which year.

From Wohnung 1+1 zum Kauf, 58 m²: its asking price, floor area and Bytky's rent estimate. Open the listing

Start from an area

Pick a town, district or neighbourhood and a layout. The price and the rent become the area's medians today.

The home

Without the charges for services (heating, water, the lift).

If you buy

1.990.000 Kč of your own money. Under 36, banks may lend up to 90 %.

Worked out for 58 m²: repair fund, administration, insurance and property tax.

Over the years

Buy: after 10 years6,6 Mio. Kč

Rent: after 10 years5,5 Mio. Kč

The result

Buying comes out ahead from year 4. After 10 years you'd have 1.050.072 Kč more than if you rented.

A month in the first year

Buying
46.421 Kča month
Renting
26.680 Kča month
Buying
Mortgage: 42.440 Kč · Owner's costs: 1.710 Kč · Upkeep: 4.146 Kč · Tax relief: −1.875 Kč
Cash on day one
2.007.000 Kč
Mortgage: 7.960.000 Kč

What you'd have after 10 years

If you buy
6.552.280 Kč
If you rent
5.502.208 Kč
Break-even
Year 4
Find homes on the map

What you'd have at each year's end

Year by year

Year by year
YearHome valueStill owedPaid to ownPaid in rentBuying: you'd haveRenting: you'd have
110.248.500 Kč7.841.281 Kč557.052 Kč320.160 Kč2.100.648 Kč2.329.778 Kč
210.555.955 Kč7.716.561 Kč559.152 Kč329.760 Kč2.525.143 Kč2.658.455 Kč
310.872.634 Kč7.585.539 Kč561.324 Kč339.660 Kč2.965.594 Kč2.993.055 Kč
411.198.813 Kč7.447.895 Kč563.556 Kč349.848 Kč3.422.636 Kč3.333.601 Kč
511.534.777 Kč7.303.296 Kč565.860 Kč360.348 Kč3.896.926 Kč3.680.107 Kč
611.880.820 Kč7.151.388 Kč568.236 Kč371.148 Kč4.389.155 Kč4.032.597 Kč
712.237.245 Kč6.991.806 Kč570.672 Kč382.284 Kč4.900.042 Kč4.391.054 Kč
812.604.362 Kč6.824.161 Kč573.192 Kč393.756 Kč5.430.331 Kč4.755.480 Kč
912.982.493 Kč6.648.042 Kč575.796 Kč405.564 Kč5.980.807 Kč5.125.879 Kč
1013.371.968 Kč6.463.024 Kč578.460 Kč417.732 Kč6.552.280 Kč5.502.208 Kč

Thinking of letting it instead? Work out its cash flow

How the comparison works

The same home, bought or rented, month by month for the years you stay. Money is never left idle: whoever pays less in a month invests the difference, and both earn the same return.

What it counts

  • Buying: the down payment and the purchase costs on the first day, then each month the mortgage, the owner's costs and upkeep. The home's value grows each year.
  • Renting: the rent, rising once a year. The charges for services are left out, because owners pay them too.
  • The renter invests what the buyer put down on day one. After that, each month, whichever side pays less invests the difference.
  • At each year's end the buyer sells: the home's value, less the mortgage still owed and the selling costs, plus their investments. The renter has their investments.
  • Mortgage interest on your own home lowers your income tax base, up to a yearly cap; the saving comes back once a year with the tax return.

What it leaves out

  • Inflation: everything is in today's crowns as they'll be paid, not adjusted to today's value.
  • Rate changes: the rate stays the same for the whole term, though real mortgages are re-fixed every few years.
  • Moving and furnishing, which both sides pay.
  • Tax on investment gains: shares and funds held for over three years are free of income tax in Czechia.
  • Risk: a home's value and investments can fall as well as rise, and neither is certain.

Every starting figure and its source

Verified figures come from the law or the ČNB, checked on the date shown. Assumptions are typical values: change them to yours.

Questions

Questions about renting or buying

Is it better to rent or buy in Czechia?

It depends on three things: how many years of rent the home costs, how long you'll stay, and what your money would earn elsewhere. Where homes cost many years of rent, renting and investing the difference can leave you ahead for a long time; where rents are high against prices, buying catches up sooner. Put in your own figures, or start from an area to use its live medians.

How long do I need to stay for buying to pay off?

The calculator shows the break-even year: the first year's end from which selling would leave you better off than having rented. Buying costs about 17.000 Kč in fees up front and selling about 3 % of the price at the end, so short stays favour renting.

What does an owner pay that a tenant doesn't?

The building's repair fund, its administration, insurance of the home, the yearly property tax and repairs inside the home. Tenants and owners both pay the charges for services such as heating and water, so the calculator leaves those out.

Can I deduct mortgage interest from my taxes?

Yes, for your own home. The interest lowers your income tax base by up to 150.000 Kč a year for loans from 2021, or 300.000 Kč for older ones, which saves 15 % of the interest you deduct. The calculator assumes you pay at least that much income tax in Czechia; switch the relief off if you don't.

How much do I need to put down?

At least 20 % of the price. The ČNB caps a mortgage at 80 % of the home's value, or 90 % for applicants under 36. On top come the purchase costs: the cadastre fee and a lawyer for the contract and escrow.

Is this financial advice?

No. It's a model with the assumptions shown on this page. A mortgage adviser can tell you what a bank would actually lend you and at what rate.

Erfahre, was eine Wohnung wert ist, bevor du anrufst.

Kostenlos für alle auf Wohnungssuche. Ohne Installation und ohne Konto loslegen.

Zur KartensucheBytky zu Chrome hinzufügen