The whole BRRRR strategy lives or dies on one number: how much of your capital comes back out at the refinance. This calculator answers that, then shows you whether the same property would do better as a flip or a straight buy and hold.
Free, no signup needed. Create a free account only if you want to save it, export the PDF, or share it.BRRRR works when the refinance returns most of the cash you put in, leaving you with a cash-flowing property and your capital freed up for the next one. It fails quietly when the after-repair value comes in soft, the rehab runs over, or the refinance LTV will not stretch far enough — and you end up with your money trapped in a property that barely cash flows.
This calculator makes the failure visible before you buy. It reports cash left in the deal and percent of capital recycled as headline numbers, then runs the same property through a flip and two hold scenarios so you can see whether BRRRR is genuinely the best play or just the most exciting one.
All-in cost minus refinance proceeds. If this is at or near zero, you have recycled your capital and your cash-on-cash return goes effectively infinite.
The honest BRRRR scorecard. Above 90% is strong, 70-90% is workable, below that and you are really just buying a rental with extra steps.
Rent minus operating expenses minus the new, larger loan payment. A BRRRR that recycles all your capital but bleeds $200 a month is not a win.
Same property, four exits, side by side — including the flip's ordinary-income tax treatment, which is the detail most flip math quietly skips.
Purchase price, closing costs, rehab budget, and your honest after-repair value. Pad the rehab — overruns are the single most common reason a BRRRR strands capital.
Months from purchase to refinance, and your monthly carrying cost: taxes, insurance, utilities, and interest on any acquisition financing.
Refi LTV and rate, plus refinance closing costs. Most lenders cap cash-out refis on investment property around 70-75% LTV — confirm yours before you count on it.
Read cash left in and capital recycled first, then check the Flip and Hold cards to confirm BRRRR is actually the strongest play on this specific property.
I will email the checklist I use to pressure-test a BRRRR before writing an offer — ARV comps, rehab padding, refi LTV traps — plus where these deals still exist in the Ankeny-to-Ames corridor.
Buy, Rehab, Rent, Refinance, Repeat. You buy a property below market value, renovate it to raise the appraised value, place a tenant, refinance to pull your capital back out based on the new value, and use that capital to buy the next one.
Above 90% is a strong BRRRR — you get nearly all of your money back and can move to the next deal. Between 70% and 90% is workable if the cash flow is solid. Below 70%, you are tying up capital for a long time and should compare it honestly against simply buying a rental with a conventional loan.
Cash-out refinances on non-owner-occupied property commonly cap around 70-75% of appraised value, and seasoning requirements often mean waiting six to twelve months after purchase before the new value counts. Confirm both with your lender before you underwrite the deal — an assumed 80% LTV that comes back at 70% can strand tens of thousands of dollars.
Pull recent sold comparables of similar size, age, and condition within a tight radius, and weight the ones that closed most recently. I can run MLS comps on a specific property for you — that is a normal part of what I do for investor clients, before you have committed to anything.
It depends entirely on the deal, which is why the calculator runs both. Flipping produces a faster paycheck but it is taxed as ordinary income if you hold under a year, and it builds no long-term position. BRRRR is slower and less liquid but leaves you owning a cash-flowing asset with your capital returned.
It works on fewer properties than it did at 4% rates, because the higher refinance payment eats cash flow. The deals that still work generally have a wider spread between all-in cost and ARV. The calculator will tell you plainly when the numbers do not clear — that is the point of running it first.