Rent Increase vs. Moving Costs Breakeven Calculator

What this calculator does

The calculator compares two paths at lease renewal: accept the proposed rent increase and stay, or pay one-time costs to move to an apartment with a lower monthly cost. It adds up the one-time costs you enter (movers or a truck, broker and application fees, boxes, cleaning and utility setup, and a value for your own time), works out how much less the new place costs each month once any change in commuting cost is included, and divides the first figure by the second. The result is the number of months before the lower monthly cost repays the move. It also shows the net position after 12 and 24 months, a 24-month chart of cumulative spending on each path, and the equal-cost rent increase: the increase at which the two paths cost the same over 12 or 24 months.

It is a cash-flow comparison for renters. It does not rate apartments, forecast next year's rent on either unit, or account for differences in space, condition or location beyond the commuting cost you enter.

How the math works

Monthly cost of staying = current rent + proposed increase. Monthly cost of moving = new rent + extra commuting or transit cost. The monthly difference is the first minus the second. One-time moving cost = movers or truck + broker and application fees + boxes, cleaning and utility setup + time and labor value. When the monthly difference is positive, months to recover = one-time moving cost ÷ monthly difference. The 12-month and 24-month figures are the monthly difference times 12 or 24, minus the one-time cost. When the new place costs the same or more each month, the move is never recovered and the page says so.

The equal-cost rent increase solves for the increase that makes both paths cost the same over a chosen period: new rent + commuting cost − current rent + one-time moving cost ÷ number of months. At the default inputs it is $208 a month over 12 months and $79 a month over 24 months, against an entered increase of $250. An increase above the 12-month figure means moving costs less within a year; an increase between the two figures means moving costs less only if you stay at the new place for most of two years. Security deposits and any overlap of two rents are not included; the section on deposits below shows how to add them.

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Worked example

The first preset button loads this case. Rent is $2,500 a month and the landlord proposes a $200 increase, so staying costs $2,700. A comparable apartment rents for $2,350, and the new commute costs $40 a month more, so moving costs $2,390 a month. The monthly difference is $310. One-time costs are $1,100 for movers, $800 in broker and application fees, $350 for boxes, cleaning and utility setup, and $250 for time off work, a total of $2,500.

$2,500 ÷ $310 gives 8.1 months to recover the move. After 12 months the move is ahead by $1,220 ($310 × 12 − $2,500), and after 24 months by $4,940. The equal-cost increase over 12 months is $98 a month: at that increase or below, staying costs no more over one year. Over 24 months it is below zero, because the new apartment plus commute is already $110 a month cheaper than the current rent before any increase, so over two years moving costs less even if the rent stays flat.

How moving cost and monthly difference set the breakeven

Breakeven depends on only two numbers, so it can be tabulated. Each cell below was produced by the page's own calculation with the stated one-time cost and monthly difference; the figure after the bar is the net position after 24 months.

Halving the one-time cost halves the breakeven, and so does doubling the monthly difference. A small monthly difference is the case where the result is most sensitive: at $100 a month, every extra $1,000 of moving cost adds ten months. A 12-month lease at the new place recovers the move only in the cells below 12 months, and the table does not account for the new landlord raising rent at the next renewal.

Security deposits and overlapping rent

A deposit is not a cost if it comes back in full, which is why the calculator leaves it out. It does tie up cash: the new landlord collects a deposit at signing, while the old one comes back only after you leave, within a deadline set by state law. The table shows the cap and return deadline in five states, taken from the statutes linked in the Sources list. A deposit the old landlord keeps for damage or unpaid rent is a real cost; add the amount you expect to lose to the setup-cost field.

Overlapping rent is often a larger cost than the deposit. If the new lease starts before the old one ends, the overlap is money spent on both units and belongs in the one-time cost. At the default inputs, adding half a month of the new rent ($1,200) to the setup-cost field moves the breakeven from 10.3 to 14.3 months and turns the 12-month result from +$500 to −$700; a full month of overlap ($2,400) moves it to 18.3 months, with the 24-month result falling from +$4,100 to +$1,700.

Broker fees in New York City and Massachusetts

The broker fee is often the largest single one-time cost, and two jurisdictions changed who pays it in 2025. In both, a tenant who did not hire the broker can usually enter $0 in the broker field and keep only application or other fees the law still allows.

The effect on the result is direct. At the default inputs, setting the $1,200 broker fee to $0 cuts the one-time cost to $1,900 and the breakeven from 10.3 to 6.3 months. With the high-cost metro preset, removing its $2,500 broker fee cuts the breakeven from 8.3 to 4.3 months. A tenant who hires their own broker to search still pays that broker in both places.

Moving costs and federal income tax

For most renters the one-time costs are paid with after-tax money. IRS Form 3903 (2025) states that moving expenses can be deducted only by a member of the Armed Forces on active duty who moves because of a military order and permanent change of station. IRS Tax Topic 455 adds that employees or new appointees of the intelligence community who move in 2026 or later may be treated as Armed Forces members for this purpose. For those who qualify, the deduction covers transportation and storage of household goods and travel, including lodging, but not meals. Broker fees, cleaning and your own time are not on that list, and the calculator does not model any deduction.