Investor calculator
Rental Property Calculator
Estimate the monthly mortgage payment, cash flow, net operating income, cap rate, and cash-on-cash return for a rental property, from the numbers you enter. Results are estimates for educational and planning purposes, not financial, tax, legal, lending, or investment advice.
Enter your property numbers
Estimated results
Monthly mortgage payment
$--
Gross monthly income
$--
Monthly operating expenses
$--
Estimated monthly cash flow
$--
Annual cash flow
$--
Net operating income (NOI)
$--
Cap rate
--%
Cash invested
$--
Cash-on-cash return
--%
Estimates for educational and planning purposes only. Not financial, tax, legal, lending, or investment advice. Actual results depend on the property, the market, and the financing you obtain.
What it does
The full income property picture.
This calculator combines purchase, financing, income, and operating expenses into the five numbers investors actually use: mortgage payment, cash flow, net operating income, cap rate, and cash-on-cash return. It is for anyone evaluating a rental, whether it is your first property or your tenth.
What each major input means
- Purchase price and down payment: the price and the cash portion; the difference is your loan amount.
- Rate and term: your mortgage terms; use current quotes from a licensed lender.
- Rent and other income: realistic market rent, not asking rent, plus any laundry, parking, or storage income.
- Operating expenses: taxes, insurance, HOA, management, vacancy, maintenance, repairs, utilities, and reserves. Underestimate these and the cash flow is fiction.
- Closing costs and improvements: the one-time cash that, with your down payment, forms your total cash invested.
How the calculation works
The formulas behind the outputs
The mortgage payment is the standard amortizing payment for your loan amount, rate, and term. Gross income is rent plus other income. Operating expenses are the monthly items plus a vacancy allowance against rent. Net operating income is annual income minus vacancy minus operating expenses, before the mortgage. Cap rate is NOI divided by the purchase price. Cash invested is your down payment plus closing costs plus initial improvements, and cash-on-cash return is annual cash flow divided by cash invested.
What the outputs mean
- Monthly cash flow is what the property pays you after everything, each month.
- NOI and cap rate measure the property itself, ignoring financing, for apples-to-apples comparison.
- Cash-on-cash return measures your return on the cash you actually put in, so it changes with your down payment and financing.
Important limitations
This tool ignores appreciation, depreciation, tax effects, principal paydown, and the cost of capital items beyond your entries. Empty months cost more than a percentage allowance assumes. Loan terms, rates, taxes, and insurance change with lender, market, and time. Treat every output as an estimate.
Calculator FAQ
Common questions.
Direct answers about the metrics, the assumptions, and the limits of rental property math.
What is net operating income (NOI)?
NOI is the rental income left after vacancy and operating expenses but before the mortgage payment. It measures what the property itself earns, which is why it is used to calculate cap rate.
What is the difference between cap rate and cash-on-cash return?
Cap rate uses NOI divided by purchase price and ignores financing, so it compares properties on a level field. Cash-on-cash return divides annual cash flow by the cash you actually invested, so it reflects your down payment and financing.
Are these results a guarantee of what the property will earn?
No. They are estimates based on the assumptions you enter, for educational and planning purposes only, and are not financial, tax, legal, lending, or investment advice. Actual rent, expenses, vacancy, and financing will differ.
How much should I budget for vacancy and maintenance?
There is no universal rule. Most investors enter an assumption for vacancy and set aside monthly amounts for maintenance and repairs plus a reserve for capital items. Use assumptions you can defend, then stress-test them in the rental stress test calculator.
Go deeper
Related JC Pacific investor resources.
Have questions about a California investment property? Talk with the JC Pacific team. Run the numbers first; when you are ready to look at properties, we can help with the next step.