Rent or Buy a Home? - Definitions
| Term | Definition |
| Price of home | Purchase price of the home you wish to buy. |
| Cash on hand | Cash you have for the down payment and closing costs. |
| Interest rate | Periodic charge, expressed as a percentage, for the use of borrowed money. Interest rates may vary and are subject to approval by the lender. Please enter the estimated current market rate. |
| Term in years | The number of years over which you will repay this loan. |
| Property tax rate | Your property tax rate. 1% for a $100,000 home equals $1,000 per year in property taxes. |
| Home insurance rate | Your homeowner's insurance rate. 0.5% for a $100,000 home equals $500 per year for homeowner's insurance. |
| Loan origination rate | The percentage the lending institution charges for its origination fee. 1% for a $100,000 home equals $1,000. |
| Points paid | The total number of points paid to reduce the interest rate of your mortgage. Each point costs 1% of your mortgage balance. |
| Other closing costs | Estimate of all other closing costs for this loan. This should include filing fees, appraiser fees and any other miscelleanous fees paid. |
| Total closing costs | Total up front costs to close your loan. This is the sum of the loan origination fee, amount paid for points and other closing costs. |
| Total for down payment | Total funds remaining for down payment. |
| Loan amount | Total amount of loan. |
| Investment return | Estimated annual percentage return you would receive if you invested your closing costs and down payment instead of purchasing a home. |
| Monthly rent payment | Amount you currently pay for rent per month. |
| Income tax rate | Your current marginal income tax rate. |
| Expected inflation rate | Inflation rate used to adjust amounts subject to annual increases. This includes rent, insurance and tax payments. |
| Home appreciates at | Annual appreciation you expect in the home you are purchasing. |
| Future sales commission | The percent of your homes selling price you expect to pay to a broker or real estate agent when you sell your home. |
| House payment | Total of principal, interest, taxes and insurance paid per month for your home. Insurance includes PMI and homeowner. |
| Principal payment | Total of principal paid per month on your mortgage. |
| Tax savings | The value of the tax deduction you receive on your mortgage's interest and home's property taxes. For example, if you have $900 in interest and $100 property taxes per month, the value of the tax deduction would be $280. (At a tax rate of 28%) |
| Net house payment | Your house payment minus the value of the tax deduction and principal payment. |
| Net home price | Net selling price of your home after subtracting any sales commissions. |
| Monthly PI | Monthly principal and interest payment. |
| Monthly PMI | Monthly cost of Principal Mortgage Insurance (PMI). For loans secured with less than 20% down, PMI is estimated at 0.5% of your loan balance each year. |