Guides
Everything we've learned about the rent vs buy decision in India, written to inform, not to sell you a home loan.
Latest guides
The rent vs buy decision
The comparison itself, the assumptions underneath it, and the vocabulary.
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The Retirement Trap Nobody's Talking About: Why Rising Rents Might Force You to Reconsider Homeownership | RentVsBuyIndia.com
How ₹30,000 monthly rent becomes ₹240,000 in 30 years. Explore the compound growth trap of renting vs fixed EMI costs and why homeownership may be crucial for retirement security in India.
22 September 2025
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The 7 Uncomfortable Truths About Renting vs Buying That No One Talks About | RentVsBuyIndia.com
Renting vs buying a house in India? Discover 7 uncomfortable truths that expose hidden costs, myths, and financial realities no one talks about.
17 August 2025
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Top Rent vs Buy Calculators Compared for Indian Homebuyers
We review and compare top rent vs buy calculators available to Indian users, highlighting features, accuracy and ease of use so you choose the best tool.
22 July 2025
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Glossary of Key Terms — Renting vs Buying a Home in India
Glossary of Renting and Buying Terms for Indian Real Estate
19 July 2025
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Rent or Buy a House in India? 2026 Guide | RentVsBuyIndia.com
Renting vs buying a home in India in 2026: compare upfront costs, tax breaks, break-even years and rental yields, then run your numbers with free calculators.
1 March 2025
Rental yield
What a flat earns against what it costs, city by city.
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Gross vs Net Rental Yield in India: What a 3% Flat Actually Earns
A ₹80 lakh flat let at ₹20,000 shows a gross yield of 3.00% and a net yield of 1.96%. Where the missing 1.04 percentage points go, worked out cost by cost.
8 August 2026
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Rental Yields in India's Tier-2 Cities 2026: Where Rent Beats the Metros
Tier-2 cities like Indore, Jaipur, and Coimbatore offer gross rental yields of 4–6% in 2026, above the metros. City data, why the yields are higher, and what it means for renting or buying.
1 August 2026
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What Counts as a Good Rental Yield in India? (And Why It's Lower Than You Expect)
A good residential rental yield in India is around 3–4% gross, below a fixed deposit. Here's what the number means, how gross and net differ, and what a low yield tells you about renting or buying.
30 July 2026
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Mumbai Rent and Rental Yields 2026: Average Rent by Area
Average 2BHK rent in Mumbai runs ₹24,000 in Thane to over ₹60,000 in Andheri in 2026, at gross yields of 2–4%. Area-by-area rent and yield data, and what it means for renting or buying.
28 July 2026
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Bangalore Rental Yields 2026: Area-by-Area Data and What They Mean
Rental yields in Bangalore run 3–4% in 2026, higher in pockets like HSR Layout. Area-by-area rent and yield data for Whitefield, Koramangala, and more, and what it means for renting or buying.
26 July 2026
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Delhi NCR Rental Yields 2026: Gurgaon, Noida, and Delhi Compared
Delhi reads highest of the metros at ~5.8% on median stock, while premium Gurgaon and Noida corridors run 3–4.5% in 2026. Area-by-area rent and yield data, and what it means for renting or buying.
25 July 2026
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Average Rental Yield for Residential Property in India (2026): City-by-City Data
Residential rental yields in India run 2–4% in most metros in 2026. See city-by-city figures for Mumbai, Bengaluru, Delhi, and more, plus what they mean for renting or buying.
23 July 2026
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Rent or Buy a House in India in 2026? Rental Yields and Price-to-Rent for 6 Cities
Should you rent or buy in India in 2026? Compare rental yields, price-to-rent ratios, and break-even years across Mumbai, Bengaluru, Delhi NCR, Pune, Chennai, and Hyderabad, with a calculator to run your own numbers.
9 August 2025
The cost of renting
Deposits, escalation clauses, and the full bill over a tenancy.
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Rent Escalation in India: What a 10% Annual Clause Actually Costs You
Indian leases escalate rent 5% to 10% a year. At 10% your rent doubles in 7.3 years; at 5% it takes 14.2. Over a decade the difference on a ₹30,000 rent is ₹12.09 lakh. The arithmetic, and what to negotiate.
14 August 2026
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Security Deposits for Rented Homes in India (2026): City Norms and What You Get Back
Deposits run two to three months of rent in most Indian cities and up to ten in Bengaluru. What the Model Tenancy Act caps, what the money costs you while it sits there, and how to get it back.
12 August 2026
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What Renting Actually Costs in India (2026): The Full Ten-Year Bill
Rent is the headline, not the bill. Brokerage, deposits withheld, moving, re-furnishing, and 8% annual escalation added ₹11.9 lakh to a decade of renting in our worked example. Here is the full arithmetic.
10 August 2026
The cost of buying
Down payments, affordability, and the expenses that sit beyond the EMI.
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Minimum Down Payment for a Home Loan in India (2026): The Real Number
The minimum home-loan down payment in India is 10–25% under RBI rules, but the real cash you need is higher once charges are added. Bank norms, the true figure, and why financing it is risky.
5 August 2026
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How Much Home Can You Afford in India? A Salary-to-Home-Price Guide (2026)
On a ₹1 lakh net salary you can afford a home of roughly ₹65 lakh in 2026. Here's how FOIR, RBI loan-to-value limits, and your down payment set the number, with a worked example.
3 August 2026
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Down Payment for Home Loan in India: How Much to Save & Smart Strategies
Learn how much down payment you need for a home loan in India, RBI LTV guidelines, and proven strategies to save faster for your first home purchase.
28 November 2025
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Hidden Costs of Home Ownership in India: 20+ Expenses Beyond Your EMI
Whats the true cost of homeownership in India? We talk stamp duty, registration fees, maintenance charges & other hidden expenses that add to property prices.
19 July 2025
Home loans and EMIs
Interest rates, amortisation, and whether to prepay or invest.
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Should You Prepay Your Home Loan or Invest the Money? (India, 2026)
A ₹5 lakh prepayment on a ₹64 lakh loan saves ₹13.08 lakh of interest and 33 months of EMI. Investing the same money beats it above a 8.57% return. The break-even, worked in full.
16 August 2026
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Floating vs Fixed Interest Rates Explained | Home Loan Guide | RentVsBuyIndia.com
Understand the differences between floating and fixed interest rates for home loans in India, their impact on EMI, when rates change, and practical tips to minimize interest payments.
3 May 2025
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Understanding EMI: Components, Calculation & Impact Factors
Understand how Equated Monthly Instalments work in India. Learn about interest, principal, amortisation and tips to reduce your home-loan burden.
3 May 2025
Construction and possession
Under-construction flats, delays, and what the wait actually costs.
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Builder Flat vs Resale Flat in India (2026): Which One Actually Costs Less
A resale flat has to be about 12.5% cheaper than a new ready one to break even once renovation is counted, and the renovation budget decides the whole comparison. The arithmetic on a ₹1 crore flat, plus what TDS is not.
5 September 2026
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No EMI Till Possession: What a Subvention Scheme Actually Costs in India (2026)
Compare a subvention scheme's price premium with the interest it saves. An ₹85 lakh example breaks even at 5.28%, but your loan terms and builder risk matter.
2 September 2026
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Possession Delay in India (2026): What Every Extra Year Actually Costs
A year of delay on an ₹85 lakh under-construction flat costs ₹10,31,496 in rent and pre-EMI, and eats ₹3,85,667 of the discount that made you buy it. The price of waiting rises every year you wait.
29 August 2026
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Paying Rent and Pre-EMI Together in India (2026): What the Construction Window Costs
Book an under-construction flat and you pay rent on the home you live in and interest on the home you do not, for three years. On an ₹85 lakh flat that overlap comes to ₹20,89,787, and none of it repays a rupee of principal.
25 August 2026
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Under-Construction vs Ready-to-Move in India (2026): What the Wait Actually Costs
Under-construction flats sell 10% to 20% below ready ones. On a ₹1 crore flat, three years of rent, pre-EMI, and GST cost about 5.1% of the price. Here is the arithmetic, and what the rest of the discount is paying for.
22 August 2026
Site updates
Changes to the calculators, and to the numbers they produce.
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Why Your Rent vs Buy Numbers Changed: One Reading for Every Rate
Investment returns, property appreciation, and maintenance inflation now use CAGR. With the cash-flow correction, the default renter's lead falls from ₹1.51 crore to ₹1.28 crore. Loan rates are unchanged.
20 September 2026
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We Have Reset the Starting Numbers on Every Calculator
Every calculator now opens on the same ₹80 lakh metro flat, and every uncertain figure is the middle of a published range rather than a number tuned to produce an answer.
30 July 2026
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Rent vs Buy India, Rebuilt: A New Calculator, a Smarter Comparison Period, and More Accurate Numbers
We have rebuilt Rent vs Buy India from the ground up: a new Property Investment Calculator, a flexible comparison period, a reworked Excel model, and corrected calculations.
21 July 2026