BRRRR & Rent vs Buy Calculator
Cash-out refinance results and a rent-versus-buy comparison.
BRRRR inputs
BRRRR results
Cash left in the deal
$8,500
All-in $199,000 · refinance proceeds $190,500
Appraisals on refinance frequently come in below the ARV you projected. Model a conservative ARV before committing to the deal.
$8,500 left in · $35/mo
How this is calculated
BRRRR stands for buy, rehab, rent, refinance, repeat. The strategy works by creating equity through renovation, then recovering the invested capital with a cash-out refinance based on the new appraised value rather than the original purchase price:
all-in cost = purchase + rehab + closing + holding
new loan = ARV × refinance LTV ÷ 100
cash left in deal = all-in cost − (new loan − refinance costs)
When the refinance returns everything you put in, cash left in the deal is zero and the cash-on-cash return becomes mathematically infinite — the property produces income against no remaining capital. That outcome requires buying well below market value and controlling the rehab budget tightly.
The rent-versus-buy comparison weighs two different paths for the same money. Buying builds equity through principal paydown and appreciation, but carries interest, taxes, maintenance and roughly 3% to buy plus 6% to sell in transaction costs. Renting leaves the down payment free to be invested:
buy position = future value − selling costs − remaining balance
rent position = down payment × (1 + investment return)^years
Because transaction costs are front-loaded, the break-even point for buying is usually somewhere between three and seven years depending on appreciation and the rent-to-price ratio in your market.