A
Buy a home to live in
You own and occupy this property.
Suggested starting point only — editable.
Rentvesting vs buying
Compare two ways to get into property.
See what it may take to buy a home to live in versus keeping your rental and buying an investment. The calculator guides you through the cash needed, the monthly budget and the longer-term property position.
Rentvesting Calculator AustraliaAbout 3 minutes · advanced settings optional
1About you
2Two options
3Loan choices
4Your result
1
Start with what you know.
These three details set up the comparison. You do not need to know lender rules, stamp duty or tax calculations.
We compare the total cash needed with this amount so you can see a likely shortfall or remaining buffer.
Choose a pathway only when you have checked the owner-occupier rules or a participating lender has confirmed it. It never applies to the investment purchase.Check the official 5% / 2% scheme rules ↗
First-home buyer note: duty relief and government support are normally tied to buying a home to live in. Buying an investment first can affect future eligibility. The calculator keeps the investment purchase separate.
2
Compare the two properties.
Choose where each property would be and enter a realistic price. The governed duty engine calculates the two purchases separately.
B
Keep renting + buy an investment
You continue renting your home and buy this property for tenants.
Suggested starting point only — editable.
Your starting-cost snapshot
Buy a home — cash needed—Deposit + governed duty + purchase costs.
Rentvest — cash needed—Deposit + governed investment duty + purchase costs.
3
Tell us about the loans.
Use the suggested planning rates or enter your own. Everything else can stay on the balanced defaults.
Starting-cost snapshot: Enter the two property options above; the detailed costs appear in your result.
Planning rates are editable and are not live product quotes.
Advanced assumptions — optional
Growth and tax estimate
Ongoing property costs
Rates, insurance and routine upkeep.
Rates, insurance, strata if applicable and routine costs.
Purchase-cost and lender adjustments
Governed duty: both purchase paths use the Rate Challenge duty engine unless you enter a positive manual override. Confirm final figures with the relevant revenue authority and your conveyancer or solicitor.
Loan terms
Status: Ready
Your comparison
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1 · Cash needed to start
Settlement-day cash
Buy a home—
Rentvest—
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2 · Typical month in year 1
Monthly budget
Buy a home—
Rentvest—
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3 · Property equity after 10 years
Longer-term property position
Buy a home—
Rentvest—
—
Upfront—
Monthly—
Longer term—
What happens when the assumptions change?
Use the same prices and deposits, then stress-test the growth, vacancy and interest-rate assumptions.
Balanced view: using the assumptions you entered.
Want a broker to check these numbers?
The result stays visible. Sending it is optional and your inputs are attached automatically.
See the full calculation and assumptions
Detailed starting-cost breakdown
See exactly how the deposit, governed stamp duty, other purchase costs and starting loan were built for each option.
Buying a Home to Live In
This is the home you buy to live in yourself.
| Purchase priceThe price of the home you would live in. | — |
| DepositCash you contribute upfront toward the purchase. | — |
| Stamp duty— | — |
| Title / legal / transfer costs— | — |
| Other settlement costs— | — |
| Lenders mortgage insurance (LMI)— | — |
| Less first-home-buyer cash grant— | — |
| Total cost to purchaseFull purchase cost: property price + buying costs − any cash grant. | — |
| Cash needed at settlement— | — |
| Starting loan after purchase— | — |
Rentvest
This is the investment property you buy while renting somewhere else.
| Purchase priceThe price of the investment property. | — |
| DepositCash you contribute upfront toward the investment purchase. | — |
| Stamp duty— | — |
| Title / legal / transfer costs— | — |
| Other settlement costs— | — |
| Lenders mortgage insurance (LMI)— | — |
| Total cost to purchaseFull purchase cost: property price + buying costs. | — |
| Cash needed at settlement— | — |
| Starting loan after purchase— | — |
Tip: if you are a first-home buyer, the buying a home to live in side is the only side where an owner-occupier grant or confirmed government-guarantee setting can be entered. The investment side receives no first-home support.
Detailed monthly breakdown
See how the typical month in year one is built for each option. Positive numbers are money out; rental income reduces the rentvesting cost.
Buying a Home to Live In
Every row below is monthly. This shows the typical monthly cost of owning and living in the home in year 1.
| Monthly home loan repaymentYour estimated monthly repayment based on the rate, loan term and any extra repayment. | — |
| Monthly owner costsA monthly allowance for rates, insurance, maintenance and similar home costs. | — |
| Total monthly out-of-pocket in year 1— | — |
Rentvest
Every row below is monthly. Positive numbers are money out. Negative numbers reduce what you need to cover each month.
| Monthly rent where you liveWhat you pay each month to rent your own home while you own the investment property. | — |
| Monthly investment loan repayment— | — |
| Monthly gross rent receivedExpected monthly rent before vacancy and property expenses. It is shown as a negative because it reduces your out-of-pocket. | — |
| Monthly vacancy allowance— | — |
| Monthly management / variable costsMonthly allowance for management fees, reletting and other variable holding costs. | — |
| Monthly fixed property costsMonthly rates, insurance, strata if any, and other fixed holding costs. | — |
| Estimated monthly tax effect— | — |
| Total monthly out-of-pocket in year 1— | — |
Detailed longer-term position
The main result above shows property equity because it is easier to understand. These figures also subtract costs that do not come back, such as interest, buying costs and rent paid.
Detailed position — Rentvesting
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Equity minus modelled costs that do not come back.
Detailed position — Buy a home
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Equity minus modelled costs that do not come back.
Detailed position gap
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Positive means rentvesting is ahead on this detailed measure.
Property equity — Rentvesting
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Investment value minus remaining loan.
Property equity — Buy a home
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Home value minus remaining loan.
Typical monthly difference
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Negative means rentvesting uses less monthly cash.
Cash needed — Buy a home
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Cash needed — Rentvest
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Starting loan — Buy a home
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Starting loan — Rentvest
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Cost and support settings used
Planning tool only. This is not a property forecast, borrowing-capacity result, lender approval or personal tax advice. Stamp duty is requested from the governed Rate Challenge duty engine unless a positive manual override is entered. Confirm LMI, grants, scheme eligibility, final duty and tax treatment before acting.
Learn what sits behind the result
The four-page Rentvesting cluster keeps the calculator practical and puts the detailed explanations in the complete guide and two focused supporting pages.