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Lease Renewal vs. Move Calculator: Should I Renew My Lease or Move?

Add the renewal terms on one side and the new place's terms on the other. Different lease lengths are fine. The calculator amortizes concessions into a monthly all-in on each side, tracks one-time move costs separately, and tells you when those upfront costs would pay back.

Verdict

Awaiting input
$—/ mo

Add a renewal rent and renewal length on one side, a new base rent and new lease length on the other, to see the comparison.

01 — Stay

Renew the lease.

The renewal terms your landlord is offering. Most renewals are 12 months at a bumped rate.

Monthly fees

Parking, pet rent, amenity, valet, or anything else billed monthly on top of rent.

No monthly fees added.

Or

02 — Move

Sign somewhere new.

The other building's terms. Set the new lease length.

Concessions

Weeks free, months free, % off, $ off, or any other special at the new place.

No specials yet.

Monthly fees

Recurring monthly fees at the new place.

No monthly fees added.

Or

One-time move-in costs

Deposits, application and admin fees, movers, broker fee, and any other upfront cash that goes out when you move.

No one-time costs added.

Or

Tip: the verdict updates live as you type.

FAQ

Stay or move,
decoded.

Which costs to count, how break-even works, and how to handle the security deposit when the math gets messy.

  • 01When does moving make sense over renewing?

    Moving usually makes sense when the new apartment's net effective rent (after any concessions) is meaningfully lower than your renewal, by enough that the per-month savings clear the one-time move-in costs before the new lease is up. A $200/mo bump might look painful on paper, but if moving costs $3,500 upfront and only saves you $150/mo, you'd need a 23-month lease just to break even.

  • 02What if the new lease is longer than my renewal?

    Use the actual lengths on each side; they don't need to match. A 13- or 15-month new lease often comes with the best concessions, and the calculator amortizes those specials across each lease's own term so the monthly all-in comparison stays apples-to-apples regardless of how long each option locks you in for.

  • 03What costs should I include in the one-time list?

    Anything you'll pay once on the way out or in: security deposit at the new place, application and admin fees, broker fee, movers or a truck rental, lost deposit at the current place, cleaning fees, and any pet deposits. If you can think of a cash outlay that happens once, put it in.

  • 04Should I count the security deposit if I'm getting it back?

    It depends on how you're thinking about the move. For pure cash flow during the move, yes, the deposit is money out the door even if you'll get it back later. For long-term net wealth, only the lost portion matters. If you expect your current deposit to come back before the new one is due, you can net them by entering just the difference.

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