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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+kk zum Kauf, 29 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

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

Worked out for 29 m²: repair fund, administration, insurance and property tax.

Over the years

Buy: after 10 years4,1 Mio. Kč

Rent: after 10 years2,9 Mio. Kč

The result

Buying comes out ahead from year 2. After 10 years you'd have 1.188.305 Kč more than if you rented.

A month in the first year

Buying
26.920 Kča month
Renting
18.643 Kča month
Buying
Mortgage: 25.378 Kč · Owner's costs: 938 Kč · Upkeep: 2.479 Kč · Tax relief: −1.875 Kč
Cash on day one
1.207.000 Kč
Mortgage: 4.760.000 Kč

What you'd have after 10 years

If you buy
4.064.500 Kč
If you rent
2.876.195 Kč
Break-even
Year 2
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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
16.128.500 Kč4.689.017 Kč323.040 Kč223.716 Kč1.267.976 Kč1.369.170 Kč
26.312.355 Kč4.614.444 Kč324.276 Kč230.424 Kč1.534.186 Kč1.532.710 Kč
36.501.726 Kč4.536.103 Kč325.536 Kč237.336 Kč1.810.518 Kč1.697.509 Kč
46.696.777 Kč4.453.803 Kč326.844 Kč244.464 Kč2.097.376 Kč1.863.459 Kč
56.897.681 Kč4.367.344 Kč328.188 Kč251.796 Kč2.395.183 Kč2.030.448 Kč
67.104.611 Kč4.276.516 Kč329.568 Kč259.344 Kč2.704.377 Kč2.198.351 Kč
77.317.749 Kč4.181.099 Kč330.996 Kč267.132 Kč3.025.418 Kč2.367.024 Kč
87.537.282 Kč4.080.861 Kč332.472 Kč275.148 Kč3.358.783 Kč2.536.330 Kč
97.763.400 Kč3.975.556 Kč333.984 Kč283.392 Kč3.704.970 Kč2.706.115 Kč
107.996.302 Kč3.864.930 Kč335.544 Kč291.900 Kč4.064.500 Kč2.876.195 Kč

Thinking of letting it instead? Work out its cash flow

Reader poll

Do you own the home you live in?

Anonymous, one answer per browser. We use the answers to learn who reads Bytky.

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.

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