Buying a home can be a daunting task. Yes, it’s exciting to become a homeowner but the decision to take this step in life often comes with some heavy price tags. Thank goodness technology is here to help! To make it easier here’s a snapshot of the free mobile apps and free online calculators that can help you achieve your goal of homeownership.

This is not a comprehensive list. I’d run out of time if I were to list all the available options currently in the market. Instead, this is a compilation of those online calculators and universal smartphone apps that I believe are most useful—and the majority are 100% free to use.

Should I rent or buy?

Name: New York Times’ Rent vs. Buy Calculator

Type: Online tool

Cost: Free

Claim: The calculator keeps a running tally of the most common expenses of owning and renting. It also takes into account something known as opportunity cost — for example, the return you could have earned by investing your money instead of spending it on a down payment. The calculator assumes that the profit you would have made in your investments would be taxed as long-term capital gains and adjusts the bottom line accordingly. The calculator tabulates opportunity costs for all parts of the buying and renting situations. All figures are in current dollars.

Pros: This calculator factors in so much more than a simple comparison between your monthly rent and your monthly mortgage payment. It also analyzes opportunity cost—the loss of any potential gain from other alternative options. If you really want to find out if it’s economically better to buy rather than rent this calculator will give you an answer. Better yet, it will tell you at what point it makes more financial sense to take the leap and start owning.

Cons: It’s U.S. based. That means that all mortgage calculations are based on U.S. regulations, which are quite different than Canadian regulations.

Name: Rentseeker’s Rent vs. Buy calculator

Type: Online tool

Cost: Free

Claim: This calculator compares your initial monthly rent payment to your initial monthly housing payment and does not factor in future changes to these payments.

Pros: Live in a major Canadian city (aside from North or West Vancouver)? Then this calculator may be ideal for you. It compares monthly rent to homeownership costs and gives you a quick, graphical look at how much more expensive homeownership really can be. Even better this calculator will automatically calculate and add-in the mortgage loan insurance fees if your downpayment is less than 20%.

Cons: While the calculator factors in more than just the cost of a monthly mortgage payment it doesn’t give an accurate comparison. By omitting utility costs from the renter’s portion of the monthly costs and by neglecting to factor in annual rent increases you get a pretty skewed perspective of what option is better. Truth be told, renting is always easier on the pocketbook, but over time the equity in paying down a mortgage adds up. Neglect this and omit annual rent increases and you’re really just looking at a current snapshot of what’s better and ignoring future consequences.

How much home can I afford?

Name: Calum Ross’ Mortgage qualifier calculator

Type: Online calculator

Cost: Free

Claim: This calculator steps you through the process of finding out how much you can borrow.

Pros: Determine what you can afford either by inputting your annual income or the house price. This will spit out a preliminary affordability snapshot, but then you can alter the equation by adding or reducing your down payment, budgeting monthly expenses, or adding in GST (charged to buyers of new-build homes or pre-development condos).

Cons: Closing costs are capped at $10,000, so anyone anticipating a larger cost, say due to land transfer taxes, may have to fudge their expense numbers so you can get a more accurate reflection of what you can afford.

Name: CMHC’s Debt service calculator

Type: Online calculator

Cost: Free

Claim: This calculator will help you compare the level of your monthly debt and housing expense payments to your gross monthly household income. It’s the same assessment your mortgage advisor will perform when qualifying you for a mortgage.

Pros: To qualify for a mortgage rate and a mortgage you must submit proof of income, among other financial documentation. This documentation is then used to calculate your debt ratios—how big of a piece of pie is taken up by your current debt repayment. This online tool gives you a snapshot of what the pros are looking at and gives you a better idea as to whether or not you could qualify for a mortgage loan. (For more on debt service ratios, see my post on how they are used by your lender.)

Cons: The tool doesn’t take into consideration how different types of income are treated differently by lenders and it doesn’t factor in all monthly expenses.

Name: Globe and Mail’s: Down payment tool

Type: Online tool

Cost: Free

Claim: Saving for a down payment is the entrance exam for home ownership. But in cities where prices are surging to record levels, passing the test is a greater challenge than ever for first-time buyers. Saving up can take years longer than it once did. How long will it take you to break into the market? Find out with our new interactive tool.

Pros: Great interactive tool to help you determine how long it will take you to save up a 20% down payment for a home in your city of residence.

Cons: The tool is limited to 12 municipality choices—11 of Canada’s largest cities along with an “other” option that can be used if you fall outside of the 11 listed cities.

Should I buy this house?

Name: Hometrics.ca

Type: Online tool

Cost: Free or $29 per segment or $99 for full address report. Monthly or annual plans also available.

Claim: The credit report for your home. Avoid hazards before you buy.

Pros: Want to avoid buying a home with potential nuisance neighbours? Want to know if there are registered sex offenders living in the area? Concerned about watermain breaks. The free version of Hometrics allows you to input an address within the Greater Toronto Area and it provides a synopsis of 12 areas that can impact your enjoyment or your home’s value. The paid version gives you a very robust snapshot of the house, the neighbourhood and how these metrics compare to other GTA neighbourhoods. No doubt about it, the paid version of this report is packed with information. Great for real estate investors or for buyers who want a more quantifiable report on the neighbourhood.

Cons: It’s limited to the Greater Toronto Area and much of the information may not help a buyer narrow down what a home is really worth.