Free online BRRRR calculator

BRRRR — Buy, Rehab, Rent, Refinance, Repeat — is the dominant strategy for scaling a rental portfolio without running out of capital. This calculator checks whether a deal actually pulls your money back out.

Purchase price ($)

What you pay to acquire the property, before rehab.

Rehab cost ($)

Total renovation budget: materials, labor, permits, surprises.

After-repair value / ARV ($)

Appraised value once the rehab is done — drives the refinance loan amount.

Monthly rent ($)

Gross rent before expenses. Compare to the 1 % rule (rent ≥ 1 % of all-in).

Refi LTV (%)

Conventional investment-property cash-out refis usually cap at 70–75 % of ARV.

Refi rate (% APR)

Quote from your lender. Investment property rates typically run 0.5–1 % above primary.

Refi term (years)

30-year fixed is the default. Shorter terms lower total interest but raise the monthly.

Monthly operating expenses ($)

Property tax + insurance + HOA + maintenance + PM + vacancy reserve. Not the mortgage payment.

Holding costs during rehab ($, optional)

Utilities, insurance, interest on short-term financing during the rehab window. Adds to all-in cost.

Cash left in deal

$—

After refi

Monthly cash flow

$—

Rent − expenses − PI

Annual cash flow

$—

Monthly × 12

Cash-on-cash

—%

Annual CF ÷ cash left

Item	Amount

How to use

Enter the purchase price — what you pay to acquire the property.
Enter the rehab cost — every dollar of renovation, including a buffer for surprises (10–20 % on top of your bid is standard).
Enter the after-repair value (ARV) — the appraised value once the rehab is done.
Enter monthly rent and monthly operating expenses (tax, insurance, HOA, maintenance, PM, vacancy).
Set refi LTV %, refi rate, and refi term.
Read the results: cash left in deal, monthly cash flow, annual cash flow, and cash-on-cash return. The breakdown table below traces every line.

The BRRRR loop

Step	What happens
Buy	Acquire a distressed property at a discount (cash or short-term loan).
Rehab	Renovate to raise the appraised value, ideally more than the rehab cost.
Rent	Place a tenant, stabilize the operating numbers.
Refinance	Cash-out refi at 70–75 % of ARV. Use the proceeds to repay acquisition.
Repeat	Roll the recovered capital into the next deal.

The goal is a deal where refi loan ≥ all-in cost — you pull all your capital out and the property still cash flows. When that happens, cash-on-cash return is infinite because the remaining invested capital is zero.

Formula

all-in cost     = purchase + rehab + holding costs
refi loan       = ARV × (LTV / 100)
cash left       = max(0, all-in − refi loan)
cash out at refi = max(0, refi loan − all-in)

monthly PI      = refi loan × r(1+r)ⁿ / ((1+r)ⁿ − 1)
  where r = refi rate / 12, n = term in months

monthly cash flow = rent − operating expenses − monthly PI
annual cash flow  = monthly cash flow × 12

cash-on-cash      = (annual cash flow / cash left) × 100
                  = ∞ when cash left ≤ 0

Worked example

Purchase: $100,000
Rehab: $30,000
ARV: $180,000
Rent: $1,800/mo
Monthly expenses: $400
Refi: 75 % LTV, 7 % APR, 30 y

Step by step:

All-in cost = 100,000 + 30,000 = $130,000
Refi loan = 180,000 × 0.75 = $135,000
Cash left = max(0, 130,000 − 135,000) = $0 · Cash out at refi = $5,000
Monthly PI on $135,000 at 7 % / 30 y ≈ $898
Monthly cash flow = 1,800 − 400 − 898 ≈ $502
Annual cash flow = 502 × 12 ≈ $6,024
Cash-on-cash return = ∞ (all capital recovered)
1 % rule check: 1,800 / 130,000 = 1.38 % → passes

A deal this clean is rare in 2026-priced markets. A more realistic outcome is $20,000–$40,000 stuck in the deal with an 8–12 % cash-on-cash.

What the calculator does not include

Closing costs on the purchase (2–4 % of price) or the refi (2–5 % of loan). Fold them into Holding costs to be conservative.
Seasoning period — most conventional lenders make you wait 6–12 months before a cash-out refi on a newly acquired property.
DSCR / lender overlays — some lenders require the property to cover 1.0× or 1.25× the new mortgage before approving the refi.
Tax consequences — depreciation, capital gains at sale, 1031 exchanges. A CPA who knows real estate pays for themselves.

Notes

ARV accuracy is everything. If the appraisal comes in 10 % below your estimate, the refi shrinks proportionally and cash-on-cash craters. Pull three recent comps per property before you write the offer.
1 % rule is a filter, not a finish line. A deal that barely passes the 1 % rule with thin operating margins isn’t a great BRRRR — you want rent-to-all-in closer to 1.2 % or higher for margin.
Rates matter more in refi than purchase. Each 1 % bump in refi rate takes roughly $90–$100/mo out of cash flow on a $135,000 loan. Shop 3+ lenders.
Sources: BiggerPockets BRRRR guide, Investopedia cash-on-cash return.

Frequently asked

What does BRRRR stand for?

Buy, Rehab, Rent, Refinance, Repeat. You buy a distressed property, renovate it to lift the appraised value, rent it out, do a cash-out refinance at a fraction of the new (higher) value, and recycle the recovered cash into the next deal.

What is cash left in deal?

The capital still invested after the refinance. If your all-in cost is $130,000 and the cash-out refi is $135,000, the cash left is $0 — you recovered everything (plus $5,000 extra). If all-in is $200,000 and refi is $180,000, $20,000 stays in the deal.

What is cash-on-cash return?

The annual cash flow divided by the cash still invested, expressed as a percent. A good BRRRR target is 10 %+ cash-on-cash once stabilized. When cash left is zero, the return is technically infinite — the calculator shows ∞.

What is the 1 % rule?

A quick quality filter used by rental investors — monthly rent should be at least 1 % of all-in cost. A $130,000 all-in with $1,300/month rent just clears it. In expensive metros the 1 % rule is often unattainable; investors relax it to 0.7 % or 0.8 %.

What LTV should I expect on a cash-out refi?

Fannie Mae conventional loans cap cash-out refis on investment properties at 75 % LTV. Some DSCR and portfolio lenders go to 80 %. Lower LTV lenders (70 %) often have better rates and fewer reserve requirements.

What does the calculator NOT include?

Closing costs on either the purchase or the refi, appraisal fees, loan points, and tax consequences. Real deals typically lose another 2–4 % to these. Add them to your rehab or holding-cost fields to be conservative.

How accurate is the ARV?

Everything depends on it. If your appraiser comes in 10 % below your estimate, the refi shrinks proportionally and cash left jumps. Get comps from 3+ recent sales, not your hopes.

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