Rental Property Cash Flow Calculator

A rental property cash flow calculator estimates how much money a rental will put in your pocket each month after the mortgage and all operating expenses are paid. It also shows return measures such as the cap rate and cash-on-cash return so you can compare one deal against another.

Add your monthly rental income, subtract a vacancy allowance and all operating expenses such as taxes, insurance, property management, maintenance, capital expenditure reserves, HOA dues, and utilities, then subtract the mortgage payment. The amount left over is your monthly cash flow.

The capitalization rate, or cap rate, is the annual net operating income divided by the purchase price, expressed as a percentage. Net operating income is the income left after all operating expenses but before the mortgage payment, so the cap rate measures the property's return independent of how it is financed.

Cash-on-cash return is the annual pre-tax cash flow divided by the total cash you invested, which includes the down payment, closing costs, and any upfront repairs. It shows the yearly return on the actual money you put into the deal, after the mortgage is paid.

A realistic analysis includes property taxes, insurance, any HOA or association dues, property management, routine maintenance, a reserve for capital expenditure such as roofs and systems, a vacancy allowance, and any owner-paid utilities. Leaving these out makes a property look more profitable than it really is.

Foreign investors almost always use professional property management to run a rental remotely, and every property eventually needs capital repairs such as a roof, furnace, or water heater. Budgeting for both gives a far more accurate picture of true cash flow than a simple rent minus mortgage estimate.

Yes. Foreign nationals can finance a US rental property with a DSCR loan, which qualifies on the property's rental income rather than your personal income or US credit history. Most lenders lend up to 70% of value with remote signing, or up to 75% if you travel to the States to sign, and no US credit score, Social Security number, or visa is required. Our foreign national financing service arranges this for investors buying remotely.

For steady cash flow, the US Midwest is hard to beat. Markets such as Kansas City, Missouri and Cleveland, Ohio offer low purchase prices relative to the rent they command, so the numbers in this calculator tend to work far better there than in expensive coastal cities where prices outrun rents. Our property sourcing service focuses on these Midwest markets for exactly that reason.

You can find rental properties on the MLS, through local real estate agents, or on niche listing websites that focus on investment property. Each of those puts the legwork on you, from vetting the market to checking the numbers on every deal. The alternative is to use a company that does it for you, such as our property sourcing service, which finds vetted, cash-flowing rentals in the US Midwest and handles the whole process for overseas buyers.