Rex says
Money math without the spreadsheet headache. Plug in your numbers and I'll show you exactly where the dollars land.
Try a scenario
Click to load — tweak from there.Inputs
Result
Total all-in cost of loan
$14,550
Effective annualized rate
16.2%
Monthly interest-only payment
$1,575
Points cost
$3,600
Total interest cost over hold
$9,450
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One click, a permanent link with your numbers baked in.
How to use this
- 1Enter loan amount ($).
- 2Enter interest rate (%/yr).
- 3Enter origination points (pts).
- 4Enter months held.
- 5Enter exit fee ($).
- 6Read your total all-in cost of loan on the right — it updates as you type.
- 7Hit Share to keep the scenario or send it to someone.
About this calculator
Hard money and bridge loans price differently than conventional debt — the headline rate is only part of the cost. Lenders typically charge origination points (1-3 points is common, sometimes more on riskier deals), and the interest-only monthly payments run for a short term, often 6-18 months, before the loan is refinanced or the property is sold. This calculator adds points, interest-only carrying cost over your planned hold, and any exit fee to give you the true all-in dollar cost and an annualized effective rate, which is almost always meaningfully higher than the quoted note rate because points get amortized over a short holding period rather than a 30-year term. A loan quoted at '10% plus 2 points' held for only four months carries an effective annualized cost well north of 15% once you account for the points being a fixed cost spread over a short window — exactly the kind of number that needs to be compared against your projected profit before you sign the loan documents, not after.
Worked example
Using the values the calculator loads with:
Inputs
- Loan amount: 180000 $
- Interest rate: 10.5 %/yr
- Origination points: 2 pts
- Months held: 6
- Exit fee: 1500 $
Results
- Total all-in cost of loan: $14,550
- Effective annualized rate: 16.2%
- Monthly interest-only payment: $1,575
- Points cost: $3,600
- Total interest cost over hold: $9,450
What each field means
Inputs
- Loan amount ($)
- The loan amount used in the calculation, measured in $. Starts at 180000 $ so you have a working example on load.
- Interest rate (%/yr)
- The interest rate used in the calculation, measured in %/yr. Starts at 10.5 %/yr so you have a working example on load. Accepted range: 1–20 %/yr.
- Origination points (pts)
- The origination points used in the calculation, measured in pts. Starts at 2 pts so you have a working example on load. Accepted range: 0–6 pts.
- Months held
- The months held used in the calculation. Starts at 6 so you have a working example on load. Accepted range: 1–36.
- Exit fee ($)
- The exit fee used in the calculation, measured in $. Starts at 1500 $ so you have a working example on load.
Results
- Total all-in cost of loan
- Returned as a money amount in US dollars and shown as the headline result. It recalculates instantly whenever you change an input, so you can compare scenarios without reloading.
- Effective annualized rate
- Returned as a percentage. It recalculates instantly whenever you change an input, so you can compare scenarios without reloading.
- Monthly interest-only payment
- Returned as a money amount in US dollars. It recalculates instantly whenever you change an input, so you can compare scenarios without reloading.
- Points cost
- Returned as a money amount in US dollars. It recalculates instantly whenever you change an input, so you can compare scenarios without reloading.
- Total interest cost over hold
- Returned as a money amount in US dollars. It recalculates instantly whenever you change an input, so you can compare scenarios without reloading.
FAQ
Why is the effective rate so much higher than the quoted rate?
Points are a fixed dollar cost regardless of how long you hold the loan, so the shorter your actual hold period, the more those points weigh on your annualized cost. A 2-point fee is roughly equivalent to 4% annualized if held 6 months, but only about 1.3% annualized if held 18 months — same fee, very different effective cost.
Should I negotiate points or rate first?
If you're confident in a short hold (under 6 months), negotiate points down aggressively since they hurt annualized cost the most; if you expect delays and a longer hold, negotiating the rate matters more since interest cost scales with time while points don't.
What other fees show up that this calculator doesn't include?
Watch for draw fees on construction/rehab loans, extension fees if you need more time than the original term, appraisal and underwriting fees, and prepayment penalties on some programs (though many hard money loans have none). Ask for the full fee schedule in writing before closing, not just the rate and points.
When does hard money make sense despite the cost?
When speed and flexibility (no income verification, fast close, financing based on the deal not your personal credit) let you win a deal or close in days instead of weeks, and your projected profit margin comfortably absorbs the financing cost. It's a tool for a specific window, not permanent financing — always have a clear refinance or sale exit before you close.
Accuracy and 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.
Related tools
Cite this calculator
Writing about this topic? Grab a citation — every link helps keep these tools free.
RevenueLab. (2026). Hard Money Bridge Loan Total Cost Calculator. Retrieved from https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/hard-money-bridge-cost
<p>Source: <a href="https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/hard-money-bridge-cost" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Hard Money Bridge Loan Total Cost Calculator — RevenueLab</a> (2026).</p>
Source: [Hard Money Bridge Loan Total Cost Calculator — RevenueLab](https://www.revenuelab.fyi/toolbox/hard-money-bridge-cost) (2026).