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 3+kk zum Kauf, 63 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

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

Worked out for 63 m²: repair fund, administration, insurance and property tax.

Over the years

Buy: after 10 years5,5 Mio. Kč

Rent: after 10 years4,2 Mio. Kč

The result

Buying comes out ahead from year 3. After 10 years you'd have 1.327.692 Kč more than if you rented.

A month in the first year

Buying
38.360 Kča month
Renting
24.938 Kča month
Buying
Mortgage: 34.975 Kč · Owner's costs: 1.843 Kč · Upkeep: 3.417 Kč · Tax relief: −1.875 Kč
Cash on day one
1.657.000 Kč
Mortgage: 6.560.000 Kč

What you'd have after 10 years

If you buy
5.481.591 Kč
If you rent
4.153.899 Kč
Break-even
Year 3
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
18.446.000 Kč6.462.169 Kč460.320 Kč299.256 Kč1.737.654 Kč1.894.889 Kč
28.699.380 Kč6.359.395 Kč462.204 Kč308.232 Kč2.094.289 Kč2.135.662 Kč
38.960.361 Kč6.251.427 Kč464.160 Kč317.484 Kč2.464.422 Kč2.379.247 Kč
49.229.172 Kč6.138.001 Kč466.152 Kč327.000 Kč2.848.595 Kč2.625.540 Kč
59.506.047 Kč6.018.844 Kč468.228 Kč336.816 Kč3.247.367 Kč2.874.449 Kč
69.791.229 Kč5.893.666 Kč470.364 Kč346.920 Kč3.661.323 Kč3.125.866 Kč
710.084.966 Kč5.762.162 Kč472.560 Kč357.324 Kč4.091.074 Kč3.379.666 Kč
810.387.515 Kč5.624.013 Kč474.816 Kč368.052 Kč4.537.257 Kč3.635.698 Kč
910.699.140 Kč5.478.883 Kč477.144 Kč379.092 Kč5.000.532 Kč3.893.826 Kč
1011.020.114 Kč5.326.420 Kč479.544 Kč390.456 Kč5.481.591 Kč4.153.899 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