Mortgage Lab
Buy Now or Wait?
Explore how home-price and -rate changes could affect the same type of home.
Buy now versus wait 2 years
Buy now
- Home price today
- $425,000
- Down payment
- $42,500
- Estimated monthly housing payment
- Not available yet
- Estimated cash needed
- Not available yet
- Note rate
- Not entered
- Estimated APR
- Not available yet
A valid scenario date is required.
APR unavailable with these inputs. A valid scenario date is required.
Wait 2 years
- Projected home price
- $455,271
- Down payment
- $45,527
- Estimated monthly housing payment
- Not available yet
- Estimated cash needed
- Not available yet
- Future rate assumption
- Not entered
- Estimated APR
- Not available yet
A valid scenario date is required.
APR unavailable with these inputs. A valid scenario date is required.
What does this mean for you?
Buy now
Potential advantages- Buying now participates in the assumed home-price increase while you own the home.
- Buying now starts the mortgage and ownership obligations sooner.
Wait
Potential advantages- The purchase and its estimated closing cash need are deferred until later.
- The same type of home has a higher projected purchase price after waiting.
These are scenario tradeoffs, not a recommendation. Change the appreciation or future-rate assumptions above to see how they change.
Under your assumptions
- Projected future purchase price if you wait
- $455,271
- Home-price change while waiting
- The projected home price rises by $30,271 while waiting.
- Initial monthly housing payment
- Not available yet
- Down payment at purchase
- Waiting requires $3,027 more down payment at purchase.
- Estimated cash needed at purchase
- Not available yet
These compare the initial payment at each purchase, not the buy-now payment at the later date. Taxes, insurance and mortgage insurance can change. These results depend on the future home-price and mortgage-rate assumptions entered.
Equity at the comparison date
If you buy now
- Starting equity after financed costs
- Not available yet
- Projected principal paid
- Not available yet
- Projected home-price change
- The projected home price rises by $30,271 while waiting.
- Projected total equity
- Not available yet
If you wait
You do not own this hypothetical home while waiting. Its projected price change is not equity you already hold.
- Projected starting equity when purchasing later, after financed costs
- Not available yet
Projections are for planning only and depend on the assumptions shown. Home values and mortgage rates can rise or fall. Actual loan terms, costs and future property values may differ. Current planning policies are used for both purchases; future fees, program rules, taxes and insurance may change. This comparison does not model rent, savings growth, investment returns, maintenance, taxes or selling costs.
View historical home-price trends
Historical FHFA data, separate from your 3.5% planning assumption. The FHFA reported a 2.1% U.S. house-price change from 2025 Q2 to 2026 Q2 (published August 25, 2026). This national figure is not a prediction for your ZIP or your selected wait period.
FHFA U.S. 2026 Q2 report ↗ · FHFA state datasets ↗ · FHFA annual county dataset ↗. The county dataset is a separate annual developmental index; its rates are not inferred from ZIP, state or national data. Historical performance does not guarantee future appreciation.
Jesse can help you review the numbers for your situation.
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Comparison assumptions: 2 years wait; 3.5% annual compounded home-price change; same down-payment percentage; CONVENTIONAL program; 30-year term; ZIP 85718; future rate not entered%.
How to read this comparison
Both purchases use the same mortgage planning methods. The future home price compounds your editable annual assumption over the selected waiting period. The future is your assumption, not a forecast. Current planning costs are applied to both purchases; actual future fees and program rules may differ.
The estimate for buying now includes starting equity after , scheduled reduction, and the projected change in home value. Waiting does not create equity in a home you have not purchased. This comparison does not model rent, savings growth, investment returns, maintenance, taxes or selling costs.
If you are deciding whether to rent during the waiting period, use the Rent vs. Buy comparison to explore that separate decision.
Results are educational planning estimates, not a rate quote, approval, or commitment to lend.
