Decision tools
Sell, Rent, Keep, or Renovate Calculator
Four strategies, projected side by side under your own assumptions — for homeowners who haven't decided whether they're sellers yet.
Direct answer: enter your property, loan, and rental assumptions below, and this calculator projects what selling now, renting it out, keeping it as-is, and renovating before selling would each look like. It updates instantly as you type — no form submission required, and no option is declared objectively best.
Property & current loan
Comparison horizon & shared assumptions
If you rent it out
If you keep it
If you renovate first
Sell now
$250,917
Ending value in 5 years
$187,500 in net proceeds available today, projected forward at your entered investment return.
See the math
Keep it
$319,034
Projected net value after selling costs, in 5 years
$356,711 in projected gross equity before selling costs (not liquid unless you actually sell) — versus $250,917 if today's net proceeds were invested elsewhere instead. An illustrative comparison, not a like-for-like one.
See the math
Rent it out
$325,634
Ending value in 5 years
$6,600 cumulative rental cash flow plus $319,034 in projected net sale proceeds at the end of the period.
See the math
Renovate, then sell
$267,756
Ending value in 5 years
$203,019 in immediate net proceeds after renovating, then invested for the rest of the comparison period — +$16,839 versus selling now, both measured at the same future date.
See the math
These are projected outcomes under the assumptions entered above, not directives or guarantees. Actual condition, financing terms, tax treatment, and market conditions all affect which option genuinely fits your situation — that’s what a property-specific review is for. Results do not include income taxes, capital-gains taxes, depreciation recapture, tax benefits, the cost of replacement housing, or personal-use value unless specifically entered — the “keep it” figures in particular don’t account for what it would cost to buy or rent somewhere else if you later decide to sell.
Projections, not promises
The right choice depends on facts this tool doesn't know.
Actual property condition, real financing terms, tax treatment, and your own timeline and risk tolerance all matter more than any calculator can capture. Use this to narrow down which strategy is worth a closer look, then bring the specifics to a property-specific review.
Methodology
How each of the four projections is calculated.
Every strategy below is compared at the same future point in time — the end of your entered analysis period — not a mix of today’s cash and future projections. Selling today produces cash now, so this tool grows that cash forward at your entered investment return, the same way it grows the other three strategies’ results forward, so the four headline figures are a fair, like-for-like comparison.
Sell now uses the same net-proceeds formula as the Seller Net Proceeds Calculator: sale price minus payoff, commission, and closing costs. That figure is then grown at your entered investment return through the end of the analysis period.
Keep itprojects your loan balance forward using real amortization (not a straight-line estimate) and grows the property value at your entered appreciation rate. The primary figure is what you’d net if you sold at that point — property value, minus the projected mortgage balance, minus estimated selling costs. Gross equity (before selling costs) is shown separately since it isn’t what you’d actually walk away with.
Rent it outuses the same projected future sale as Keep it — renting doesn’t change what the property is worth or what’s owed on it — and adds your cumulative rental cash flow on top. Cash flow is calculated year by year, applying your optional rent- and expense-growth assumptions if entered; the full mortgage payment (principal and interest) is subtracted as a real cash cost each month, while the principal you paid shows up as a lower mortgage balance (and therefore higher proceeds) at sale — so it’s counted once, not twice. This is a faster, higher-level comparison than a full underwriting — see the Rental Property Analyzer for that level of detail.
Renovate, then sell projects your mortgage balance forward only through the renovation delay, then treats the interest paid during that delay (plus any additional carrying costs you enter) as a real cost — the principal you paid during the delay isn’t counted again as a cost, since it’s already reflected in a lower payoff. The resulting net proceeds are then invested at your entered return for whatever time remains in the analysis period, against your own assumed post-renovation value — never a system-invented renovation return.
Worked example (hypothetical)
A $500,000 property with a $280,000 payoff, a $1,900 monthly payment at 4.5%, and a 5-year analysis period at 3% assumed appreciation and a 6% assumed investment return estimates roughly $250,900 as the ending value of selling now ($187,500 today, invested for 5 years); roughly $319,000 in projected net sale proceeds if kept (versus $356,700 in gross equity before selling costs); roughly $325,600 as the ending value if rented at $2,800/month (the same $319,000 in projected net sale proceeds, plus $6,600 in cumulative cash flow); and roughly $267,800 as the ending value of renovating and selling — about $16,800 more than selling now, both measured at the same 5-year mark — if a $40,000 cash-paid renovation over 3 months brought the value to $560,000. Change any number above to see how it moves — this example is illustrative only, not a projection for any specific property.
Downside cases
- Rental cash flow depends on the rent and expense figures you enter — it doesn’t account for a bad tenant year, an unplanned repair, or a vacancy stretch longer than your entered assumption, any of which can turn a thin positive cash flow negative.
- The renovation value increase is your own assumption, not a guarantee — renovations frequently cost more and add less value than initially expected, especially without a firm contractor bid.
- Every strategy except selling today assumes you can actually invest or reinvest the proceeds at your entered return — that return is never guaranteed, and a lower one changes every strategy’s ending value, not just one of them.
- A lower or higher appreciation rate than assumed changes every strategy that depends on future value — model a conservative rate alongside your expected one.
- If your entered monthly payment doesn’t fully cover interest at your entered rate, the projected mortgage balance can grow instead of shrink — the calculator flags this, but double-check the numbers if you see that warning.
National considerations
Rental demand, financing terms, and renovation costs all vary significantly by market and by local labor and material costs.
Utah considerations
Rental demand, new-construction competition, and typical renovation costs vary meaningfully by Utah county — see Utah-specific market guidance for the regional detail behind these assumptions.
Author: Todd McClean, Realtor® | Real Estate Investment Strategist, Mountainland Realty, Inc.. Reviewed July 26, 2026. This tool provides general real estate information and is not legal, tax, accounting, lending, securities, commodities, or financial-planning advice.
Frequently asked questions
Does this tool tell me which option is best?
Why are all four numbers measured at the same future date?
Why does "Keep it" show two different equity figures?
Where does the renovation value increase come from?
Is the rental analysis here as detailed as a full underwriting?
Do I need to fill in every section?
Related
Go deeper on the option worth exploring.
Next step
Want to review these options together?
Tell us about your property and which option you’re leaning toward. A strategic review adds the specifics this calculator can’t know.