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Appreciation Calculator

Table of contents

Appreciation definitionHow to calculate appreciation?Appreciation examplesFAQs

The appreciation calculator is a tool that helps you find the future value of anything. It may be home appreciation, investments, or anything else you need, but first, you need to know how to calculate appreciation and what it is. Remember that if the value of your product decreases over time, you may use the depreciation calculator or use a negative appreciation rate.

Appreciation definition

The definition of appreciation explains that appreciation is simply an increase in value — that after a defined period, the value of the good or service will be higher. Appreciation rate is the percentage of the increased value compared to the original value. Appreciation works similarly to compound interest. After each period, the value increases depending on the provided rate.

More common is the opposition of appreciation — depreciation — which would be a decrease in value. Both appreciation and depreciation use the same formula, with either rates that are below zero (depreciation) or above zero (appreciation). Many assets easily come to mind that we expect will grow (appreciate) or decrease (depreciate) in value.

For example, once you buy stocks, a house, or any other investment, you expect that their value will appreciate. Once you buy a smartphone, clothes, or a car, you know that their value will probably depreciate. You can see an example of this occurring in the car depreciation calculator.

How to calculate appreciation?

There is a formula that may help you find the future value of the product:

finVal=stVal⋅(apRate+1)period\small \mathrm{finVal} = \mathrm{stVal \cdot (apRate + 1)^{period}}

where:

  • stVal\text{stVal} — Starting value equal to how much your product costs;
  • apRate\text{apRate} — Appreciation rate, which is the growth rate value of the product;
  • period\text{period} — The time over which the appreciation is calculated;
  • finVal\text{finVal} — Final value expressing how much the product will cost at the end of the defined period; and
  • This is all you need to know to find, for example, your future home value.

The appreciation calculator works both ways. It means that you may calculate either the future value based on the provided appreciation rate or calculate the appreciation rate based on the provided future value. Just input the data you have and check the results. And if you'd like to read more about this concept, check out the future value calculator.

Appreciation examples

Imagine buying a house as an investment. Historically, from 1968 to 2009, the appreciation rate for houses was around 5.4%. Use the tool as the future home value calculator and check the value of your house in the next four years! Let's assume you bought your house for $150,000 in 2018, and you wonder what its value will be in 2022. Let's see how to calculate appreciation in this case.

Using the appreciation formula from the previous section, we can input the data from the example to get:

finVal=stVal⋅(apRate+1)period=$150,000⋅(5.4%+1)4=$185,120.15\small \begin{aligned} \mathrm{finVal} &= \mathrm{stVal \cdot (apRate + 1)^{period}} \\ &= \$150,000 \cdot (5.4\% + 1)^4 \\ &= \$185,120.15 \end{aligned}

In this case, finVal\text{finVal} is the future value in 2022.

If the appreciation rate for houses remains at 5.4%, the home appreciation calculator finds out that your house will be worth $185,120.15 in 2022! That is your return on investment!

Let's go the other way now. Imagine a situation where you want to know what the appreciation rate should be to get a specified future value. For example, using the data from the previous case, you would like to know what the appreciation rate should be for your house to reach $200,000 in 2022. You may manipulate the formula or just input data into the calculator!

finVal=stVal⋅(apRate+1)periodapRate=(finValstVal)1period−1=($200,000$150,000)14−1=7.457%\small \begin{aligned} \mathrm{finVal} &= \mathrm{stVal \cdot (apRate + 1)^{period}} \\[.6em] \mathrm{apRate} &=\mathrm{\left(\frac{finVal}{stVal}\right)^{\frac{1}{period}}} - 1\\[1.2em] &= \left(\frac{\$200,000}{\$150,000}\right)^{\frac{1}{4}} - 1 \\[1.2em] &= 7.457\% \end{aligned}

It means that your future home value will reach $200,000 in 4 years only if the appreciation rate is 7.457% every year.

FAQs

How do you calculate appreciation?

  1. Get your appreciation rate. For example, the housing market returned 5.4% from 1968 to 2009.
  2. Convert the above percentage to a decimal and add 1. Then, power it to the compounding periods. Let's say ten years. We have 1.054¹⁰ = 1.69.
  3. Multiply your result by the initial value of your asset. Let's say 1000 USD. Then, we have 1000 × 1.69 = 1,690 USD. You can also use Omni's appreciation calculator.

How do you invest in appreciating assets?

There are several assets whose prices have increased over the years. In any of them, you can pick an appreciation rate and add it to the Omni Calculator's appreciation calculator to get your final value:

  • Stocks
  • Houses
  • Lands
  • Artwork
  • Bonds
  • REIT (Real estate investment trusts)

How much will my house appreciate in 10 years?

House appreciation depends on inflation, economic growth, and zoning, but we can get an approximation by considering average past returns. The Standard & Poor's (S&P) 500 Real Estate Index reports an average of 4.20% per year during the last 5-year (2016-2021). Then, if we use Omni's appreciation calculator for a 100,000 USD house, in 10 years, we will have approximately 150,896 USD.

How to get the appreciation rate I should have for a desired end value?

  1. Define your end value (Vf), initial value (Vi), and the period (n) you are going to hold the asset (expressed in years).
  2. Divide Vf by Vi and get the n square of the result: (Vf/Vi)^(1/n).
  3. Subtract 1 to the previous result and multiply the new value by 100%. Now you have your desired annual appreciation rate. You can also try Omni's appreciation calculator.

If you want to calculate depreciation, use a negative appreciation rate or try the depreciation calculator.

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