Rent or buy in Colombia in 2025? The calculator that gives you the answer

3 min read

  • Housing
  • Mortgage
  • Renting
  • Financial decision

Why does Colombia rent so much?

Colombia has one of the highest rental rates in Latin America, with a significant share of households renting. Yet most renters aspire to own. The gap is not a matter of preference: until recently, with mortgage rates of 17 to 20% EA, the monthly payment on a loan far exceeded the cost of equivalent rent. That equation changed in 2025.

The new math with rates of 9 to 12%

With current mortgage rates of 9 to 12% EA, the monthly payment on a 175-million-peso property over 20 years runs about 1.4 to 1.6 million pesos. Equivalent rent in the same area typically costs between 900,000 and 1.3 million per month. The raw gap between buying and renting has narrowed significantly. The question is no longer whether a mortgage is out of reach, but how many years you need to stay in the property for buying to come out ahead, given that the buyer builds equity and the renter does not.

The end of Mi Casa Ya

The national Mi Casa Ya program, which subsidized interest rates on VIS (social-interest housing) loans, was suspended during 2025 and has no confirmed continuity for 2026. This removes an important incentive that many would-be buyers were waiting on. If your calculations depended on that subsidy, you need to rerun them at market rates. Compensation Funds maintain their own subsidies (between 20 and 30 SMLMV depending on income), and the Fondo Nacional del Ahorro remains active with the Generaci贸n FNA program for young buyers.

The factors that determine the break-even point

The year when buying beats renting depends on four variables: the initial difference between the mortgage payment and the rent, the expected annual appreciation of the property, the return you could earn by investing your down payment instead, and the number of years you plan to stay. In general, the longer you plan to stay, the more favorable buying becomes. With current rates and appreciation of 5 to 6% per year, the break-even point typically falls between 5 and 10 years.

How to use the mortgage vs. rent calculator

The mortgage vs. rent calculator takes the property price you want, your available down payment, the current mortgage rate, the equivalent monthly rent, the expected appreciation, and the years you plan to stay. It shows you the total cost of buying vs. renting over that horizon, the year when buying starts to win (or whether it never does with those inputs), and the net equity at the end of the period under each scenario.

Calculate mortgage vs. rent

References

This note is not financial advice.

Rent or buy in Colombia in 2025? The calculator that gives you the answer 路 Quantio