Run the full math on all three paths — including what your cash could earn elsewhere.
Same framework Dave uses with clients · Free to use · No commitment required
Your home is both shelter and one of your largest financial assets. When you're weighing whether to renovate, sell-and-buy, or stay as-is, the right answer depends on factors that aren't always obvious — subdivision ceilings on resale value, the arbitrage between your locked-in mortgage rate and current rates, and what your cash on hand could earn if it were invested rather than deployed into a renovation. This tool runs the full math on all three paths over a 10-year horizon. Enter your numbers below and the analysis updates instantly.
1YOUR CURRENT HOME
$
$
%
yrs
$
$
2RENOVATION SCENARIO (Path B)
$
$
%
yrs
3SELL & BUY SCENARIO (Path C)
$
%
%
yrs
%
%
%
$
4MARKET ASSUMPTIONS
yrs
%
%
%
How the paths are compared fairly: The three paths cost very different amounts each month. To compare them honestly, the tool assumes you'd budget the same total for housing either way — and invests whatever a cheaper path frees up. So if staying costs $600/mo and buying costs $4,500/mo, the "stay" path is credited with investing that ~$3,900/mo difference. "Invest Monthly Savings" sets how much of that difference you'd actually invest (vs. spend on lifestyle). At 100% the comparison is purely financial; lower it to model spending some of the savings. The "Total Housing Cost" figure on each card shows the real cash each path consumes over your time horizon.
Your Three Paths, Side by Side
Equal-budget comparison · same housing spend across all paths · invest the difference
A cheaper path frees up cash each month. What would you do with it?
★ WEALTH WINNER
★ MOST FREEDOM
Path A
Stay As-Is
Monthly Carry
—
Total Housing Cost (over horizon)
—
Cash on Hand Day 1
—
Net Worth (equal-budget basis)
—
⚠ HIGHEST RISK
★ MOST FREEDOM
Path B
Renovate
Monthly Carry
—
Total Housing Cost (over horizon)
—
Cash on Hand Day 1
—
Net Worth (equal-budget basis)
—
★ WEALTH WINNER
★ MOST FREEDOM
Path C
Sell & Buy
Monthly Carry
—
Total Housing Cost (over horizon)
—
Cash on Hand Day 1
—
Net Worth (equal-budget basis)
—
★ WEALTH WINNER
★ MOST FREEDOM
Path D
Pay Down Mortgage
Monthly Carry
—
Total Housing Cost (over horizon)
—
Cash on Hand Day 1
—
Net Worth (equal-budget basis)
—
Wealth Composition (Equal-Budget Basis)
Each path charged the same monthly housing budget. The green segment is what a cheaper path invests from its monthly savings — this is what reconciles the carry-cost difference.
Home Equity
Investments from cash on hand
Investments from monthly savings
Dimension
Path A · Stay
Path B · Renovate
Path C · Sell & Buy
Path D · Pay Down
Reality Check: Can the Leftover Cash Cover the Payment by Itself?
A common trap: assuming your invested cash both grows AND pays the mortgage. It can't do both with the same dollars. This tests the opposite extreme — if you drew the entire monthly payment from your Day-1 cash (instead of from income), how long would it last before running dry?
Path
Leftover Cash
Monthly Payment
How Long Cash Lasts
Cash Needed (full horizon)
Cash Needed (forever)
Want to walk through these numbers with Dave?
Every situation has details a tool can't capture — your specific subdivision, your lender's qualification picture, the actual condition of your home, the right list price. Dave runs this exact analysis with every client and will walk you through it free of charge. 22 years experience. Chicago suburbs specialist.