{
  "slug": "rental-property-cash-flow",
  "title": "Rental Property Cash Flow Calculator",
  "heading": "Rental Property Cash Flow Calculator",
  "category": "financial",
  "url": "https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/rental-property-cash-flow",
  "summary": "Monthly cash flow, cash-on-cash return, and the 1% test.",
  "description": "Cash flow is what is left after the mortgage, taxes, insurance, vacancy, management, and maintenance. Most deals that look profitable on rent alone go negative once vacancy and capital expenditure reserves are honest.",
  "formula": "Cash flow = Rent − vacancy − operating expenses − debt service. Cash-on-cash = Annual cash flow ÷ Cash invested.",
  "dateModified": "2026-09-30",
  "run_url": "https://www.revenuelab.fyi/api/public/calc?tool=rental-property-cash-flow",
  "inputs": [
    {
      "id": "price",
      "label": "Purchase price",
      "kind": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "default": 320000,
      "unit": "$",
      "min": 0,
      "max": null
    },
    {
      "id": "downPct",
      "label": "Down payment",
      "kind": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "default": 25,
      "unit": "%",
      "min": 0,
      "max": 100
    },
    {
      "id": "rate",
      "label": "Interest rate",
      "kind": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "default": 7,
      "unit": "%",
      "min": 0,
      "max": null
    },
    {
      "id": "years",
      "label": "Loan term",
      "kind": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "default": 30,
      "unit": "years",
      "min": 1,
      "max": null
    },
    {
      "id": "rent",
      "label": "Monthly rent",
      "kind": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "default": 2600,
      "unit": "$",
      "min": 0,
      "max": null
    },
    {
      "id": "taxes",
      "label": "Property tax",
      "kind": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "default": 4200,
      "unit": "$/yr",
      "min": 0,
      "max": null
    },
    {
      "id": "insurance",
      "label": "Insurance",
      "kind": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "default": 1600,
      "unit": "$/yr",
      "min": 0,
      "max": null
    },
    {
      "id": "vacancyPct",
      "label": "Vacancy allowance",
      "kind": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "default": 6,
      "unit": "%",
      "min": 0,
      "max": 40
    },
    {
      "id": "mgmtPct",
      "label": "Management fee",
      "kind": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "default": 8,
      "unit": "%",
      "min": 0,
      "max": 20
    },
    {
      "id": "maintPct",
      "label": "Maintenance + capex",
      "kind": "number",
      "hint": null,
      "default": 10,
      "unit": "%",
      "min": 0,
      "max": 30
    }
  ],
  "outputs": [
    {
      "id": "cashFlow",
      "label": "Monthly cash flow",
      "format": "currency",
      "hint": null,
      "primary": true
    },
    {
      "id": "annual",
      "label": "Annual cash flow",
      "format": "currency",
      "hint": null,
      "primary": false
    },
    {
      "id": "cashOnCash",
      "label": "Cash-on-cash return",
      "format": "percent",
      "hint": null,
      "primary": false
    },
    {
      "id": "capRate",
      "label": "Cap rate",
      "format": "percent",
      "hint": null,
      "primary": false
    },
    {
      "id": "onePctTest",
      "label": "Rent-to-price (1% test)",
      "format": "percent",
      "hint": null,
      "primary": false
    }
  ],
  "worked_example": {
    "inputs": [
      "Purchase price: 320000 $",
      "Down payment: 25 %",
      "Interest rate: 7 %",
      "Loan term: 30 years",
      "Monthly rent: 2600 $",
      "Property tax: 4200 $/yr",
      "Insurance: 1600 $/yr",
      "Vacancy allowance: 6 %",
      "Management fee: 8 %",
      "Maintenance + capex: 10 %"
    ],
    "outputs": [
      "Monthly cash flow: -$104.06",
      "Annual cash flow: -$1,248.71",
      "Cash-on-cash return: -1.39%",
      "Cap rate: 5.60%",
      "Rent-to-price (1% test): 0.81%"
    ]
  },
  "how_to": {
    "title": "How to use this",
    "steps": [
      "Enter purchase price ($).",
      "Enter down payment (%).",
      "Enter interest rate (%).",
      "Enter loan term (years).",
      "Enter monthly rent ($).",
      "Enter property tax ($/yr).",
      "Enter insurance ($/yr).",
      "Enter vacancy allowance (%).",
      "Enter management fee (%).",
      "Enter maintenance + capex (%).",
      "Read your monthly cash flow on the right — it updates as you type.",
      "Hit Share to keep the scenario or send it to someone."
    ]
  },
  "scenarios": [
    {
      "name": "Conservative",
      "description": "Lower-end numbers — what if things land soft?",
      "values": {
        "price": 190000,
        "downPct": 15,
        "rate": 7,
        "years": 18,
        "rent": 1550,
        "taxes": 2500,
        "insurance": 1000,
        "vacancyPct": 4,
        "mgmtPct": 4.8,
        "maintPct": 6
      }
    },
    {
      "name": "Typical",
      "description": "Defaults — the most common real-world setup.",
      "values": {
        "price": 320000,
        "downPct": 25,
        "rate": 7,
        "years": 30,
        "rent": 2600,
        "taxes": 4200,
        "insurance": 1600,
        "vacancyPct": 6,
        "mgmtPct": 8,
        "maintPct": 10
      }
    },
    {
      "name": "Ambitious",
      "description": "Higher-end numbers — what if things really pop?",
      "values": {
        "price": 510000,
        "downPct": 40,
        "rate": 7,
        "years": 48,
        "rent": 4150,
        "taxes": 6700,
        "insurance": 2600,
        "vacancyPct": 10,
        "mgmtPct": 12.8,
        "maintPct": 16
      }
    }
  ],
  "limitations": [
    "Results are estimates before tax, fees, and inflation unless an input explicitly covers them.",
    "Rates are treated as fixed for the whole period — variable-rate products will drift from this projection.",
    "This is educational maths, not financial advice. Check anything contractual with the lender or your accountant."
  ],
  "faq": [
    {
      "q": "How does the rental property cash flow calculator work?",
      "a": "Cash flow is what is left after the mortgage, taxes, insurance, vacancy, management, and maintenance. Most deals that look profitable on rent alone go negative once vacancy and capital expenditure reserves are honest. The underlying maths is: Cash flow = Rent − vacancy − operating expenses − debt service. Cash-on-cash = Annual cash flow ÷ Cash invested."
    },
    {
      "q": "What do I need to enter?",
      "a": "10 values: purchase price, down payment, interest rate, loan term, monthly rent, property tax, insurance, vacancy allowance, management fee, and maintenance + capex. Each field starts with a sensible default, so you can change one number at a time and watch the result move."
    },
    {
      "q": "What does the monthly cash flow result mean?",
      "a": "It is returned as a money amount in US dollars and updates live as you edit the inputs, so you can compare two or three versions of a scenario in a few seconds."
    },
    {
      "q": "Is this calculator free, and do I need an account?",
      "a": "Yes, it's free, and no account is required. Nothing you type is stored on our servers — the maths runs entirely in your browser."
    },
    {
      "q": "How accurate is the result?",
      "a": "It applies the standard formula exactly, so the arithmetic is precise. Results are estimates before tax, fees, and inflation unless an input explicitly covers them."
    },
    {
      "q": "Who is this tool for?",
      "a": "It's built for anyone comparing money scenarios before committing — budgeting a payment, sanity-checking a quote, or seeing what a change in rate or term actually costs."
    }
  ],
  "related": [
    "https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/cap-rate",
    "https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/mortgage"
  ],
  "license": "CC-BY-4.0",
  "citation": "RevenueLab — Rental Property Cash Flow Calculator (https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/rental-property-cash-flow)"
}