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Investment property calculator
Run the numbers before you make an offer — NOI, cap rate, cash flow, cash-on-cash return and DSCR, with RGV property tax and insurance defaults you can edit.
Purchase & financing
Rental income & expenses
Estimated monthly cash flow
-$611.54
-$7,339/yr
Based on these numbers, this property's income doesn't cover its debt service — you'd be paying out of pocket each month.
This is a planning estimate based on the numbers you enter, not investment, tax or legal advice, and not a promise of loan approval or any return. Cap rate, cash flow and cash-on-cash return depend entirely on your assumptions — verify rent, expenses and financing terms before you offer. Talk to a lender, accountant or attorney about your specific deal.
Multi-year outlook
Year-one cash flow is only part of the story — as rent rises, your loan balance shrinks, and the property (may) appreciate. Here's the same deal projected forward, based on the assumptions below.
| Year | Property value | Loan balance | Your equity | Cumulative cash flow | Total return | Total ROI |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | $283,250 | $204,422 | $78,828 | -$7,339 | $2,740 | 3.6% |
| 3 | $300,500 | $200,316 | $100,184 | -$21,641 | $9,793 | 12.7% |
| 5 | $318,800 | $195,530 | $123,271 | -$35,443 | $19,077 | 24.8% |
| 10 | $369,577 | $179,795 | $189,782 | -$67,774 | $53,259 | 69.2% |
| 30 (loan paid off) | $667,497 | $0 | $667,497 | -$168,163 | $430,585 | 559.2% |
By year 30, once the loan is paid off, this projects a total return of $430,585 (559.2% of your $77,000 invested) — combining cash flow, loan paydown and appreciation. Change any assumption above to see how the outlook shifts.
Projected, not promised — rent growth, appreciation and expense inflation are assumptions you control, not forecasts we’re making for you. Real results depend on your market, your property and your financing.
Investment property questions
What counts as an operating expense — and what doesn’t?
Operating expenses are the recurring costs of running the property: property tax, insurance, property management, a maintenance/capex reserve, and HOA dues if any. Your mortgage payment isn't one of them — NOI is calculated before debt service, which is the single most common mistake in DIY versions of this math.
What’s a good cap rate for a rental in the RGV?
There isn't one number we'd put on that — cap rates vary by neighborhood, property type and condition, and change with the market. Use the calculator above to compare specific deals against each other and against your own return targets, rather than a rule of thumb.
What’s a DSCR loan, and what ratio do I need?
A DSCR loan qualifies you on the property's rental income rather than your personal W-2 income — common for RGV investors. Most DSCR lenders want a ratio of at least 1.00–1.25, with typical down payments of 20–25% (sometimes as low as 15% with strong credit). This isn't a guarantee of approval — terms vary by lender.
Why does the insurance estimate change when I pick a different city?
Cameron and Willacy counties (Harlingen, San Benito, Brownsville, South Padre Island) sit in the TWIA-designated coastal windstorm zone, where separate wind/hail coverage is often required and premiums run higher. Hidalgo County (McAllen, Edinburg, Mission, Pharr, Weslaco, Mercedes) isn’t in that zone. Either way, get a property-specific quote before you rely on the estimate.
Why does South Padre Island use a much higher vacancy default than other cities?
Island properties are overwhelmingly short-term/vacation rentals rather than long-term leases, and occupancy for short-term listings there has run roughly 47%–53% in recent trackers — nowhere close to full-time occupancy. That's a fundamentally different rental model than a year-round lease, so it needs a different vacancy assumption. Enter your monthly rent as your fully-booked rate and expect management fees to run higher too.
Why does year-one cash flow look worse than the total return further out?
A single year of operating cash flow doesn't capture everything happening financially — each year your tenants are paying down your loan balance, and (assuming the market cooperates) the property may be appreciating too. The multi-year outlook above adds those together into a total return, which is usually a fuller picture of a rental's payoff than year-one cash flow alone.