The honest answer depends on how long you stay. Buying costs a lot at the front, and it takes years of growth and paid-down loan to win that back. Drag the sliders and the answer moves with them.
Every slider is an assumption you have chosen, not a forecast. The comparison assumes you would rent something much like the property you would buy, that the renter invests the deposit and the purchase costs rather than spending them, and that whoever has the lower monthly outgoing invests the difference. That last part is what makes it a fair comparison, and it is also the part most people do not actually do. Transfer duty is calculated on the Western Australian rates. This is general information, not financial advice.
What actually moves the answer in Perth
How long you stay. Nothing else comes close. The purchase costs are sunk on day one and every extra year spreads them thinner. Drag the years slider between five and fifteen and watch the verdict flip.
The strata levy. On an apartment or a villa this is the number that quietly decides it. A scheme with a lift, a pool and a gym can carry levies several thousand dollars a year above a plain walk-up of the same value, and that money never comes back to you the way a loan repayment partly does. Two properties at the same price are not the same purchase.
What you would otherwise do with the deposit. If it would sit in a transaction account rather than being invested, buying looks much stronger than the default six per cent return here suggests. Be honest about which one you are.
If it came out as buy
We can tell you what the levies really look like in a given scheme before you commit to it. If you are weighing up two buildings, that conversation is worth having early.
Why the rent side of this equation is moving
The May 2026 federal budget changed the tax settings behind the Perth market, and the flow-on to rents and prices is exactly what this calculator weighs up. We have written a plain-language account of what changed and what we are seeing on the ground.
On the buying side, our mortgage repayment calculator gives you the repayment on its own.
This calculator is an estimate only and is general information, not advice. It does not know your income, your other assets, or your circumstances. KPR is not licensed to give tax advice and nothing here is tax advice. For your own position, speak to a registered tax agent. We refer clients to Evolve Accountants and Business Advisors in Subiaco.
© 2026 AI RE Systems Pty Ltd. The design, wording and code of this tool are original work and may not be copied, reproduced or adapted without written permission.