House Flipping Calculator
Updated · By the CalculatorDash editorial team · How we check our maths
Quick answer
Flip profit = sale price − purchase − rehab − holding and financing costs − selling costs. Buying at $220,000, spending $50,000 on rehab and selling at $350,000 after 6 months leaves about $26,700 profit once 8% selling costs, $1,500 a month in holding costs and loan interest are paid. The 70% rule says the maximum offer should have been $195,000.
How this calculator works
Most failed flips don't fail on the purchase price; they fail on the costs nobody added up. This calculator lists every one of them: the rehab, the months of tax, insurance and utilities while you own the house, the interest on a hard-money or bridge loan, the costs of buying, and the agent commissions and closing costs of selling.
The 70% rule is a quick screening test used by many flippers: pay no more than 70% of the after-repair value minus the rehab cost. It leaves room for the costs above and a profit. It's a rule of thumb, so treat a deal that only works above it with suspicion rather than as forbidden.
Return on cash shows how hard your own money is working. Financing raises it when the deal goes well and makes losses worse when it doesn't, so check the result again with a lower sale price and a longer hold.
The formula
- Loan interest
- (purchase + rehab) × financed % × rate ÷ 12 × months
- Net profit
- ARV − purchase − rehab − buying costs − holding costs − interest − selling costs
- 70% rule
- maximum offer = ARV × 70% − rehab
Worked example
Buying at $220,000 with $50,000 of rehab and 80% financing at 11% means a $216,000 loan costing about $11,880 in interest over 6 months. Add $4,400 buying costs, $9,000 holding and $28,000 selling costs (8% of $350,000) and profit is about $26,700, roughly 34% on the $79,280 of cash invested. The 70% rule suggests a maximum offer of $195,000.
Tips
- 01Add a 10–15% contingency to the rehab budget; older houses always hide something.
- 02Get the ARV from recent sold comparables within half a mile, not from list prices.
- 03Run the numbers with two extra months of holding; permits and sales both take longer than planned.
Frequently asked questions
What is the 70% rule in house flipping?
A guideline that the purchase price should be no more than 70% of the after-repair value minus repair costs.
How much profit should a flip make?
Many investors look for at least 10–15% of the sale price, or a minimum dollar profit, to justify the risk and time.
What costs do new flippers forget?
Holding costs, loan points and interest, selling commissions, transfer taxes and concessions to buyers.