🏠 Real Estate Investing · March 20, 2026 · 16 min read

BRRRR Method Calculator in Google Sheets: Analyze Any Deal Before You Buy (2026)

The BRRRR strategy — Buy, Rehab, Rent, Refinance, Repeat — is how real estate investors recycle capital to build a portfolio without running out of cash. But the math is unforgiving. Buy wrong, over-rehab, or miss the refinance numbers and you're stuck with capital tied up indefinitely. This guide shows you how to build a BRRRR calculator in Google Sheets that models every stage before you make an offer.

What Is the BRRRR Method (and When It Works)
The Math That Makes or Breaks a BRRRR Deal
Your 5-Tab BRRRR Calculator Structure
Tab 1: Acquisition & Rehab
Tab 2: Rental Analysis (Post-Rehab)
Tab 3: Refinance Calculator
Tab 4: Return Metrics Dashboard
Key Formulas
Worked Example: $180K Purchase in a Mid-Tier Market
5 BRRRR Mistakes That Kill Deals

70%

ARV rule: max offer = 70% of ARV minus rehab

75%

typical LTV for cash-out refi on rental property

6–12 mo

typical seasoning period before refi eligibility

What Is the BRRRR Method (and When It Works)

BRRRR is a real estate investment strategy popularized by BiggerPockets. The five stages:

Buy — acquire a distressed property below market value (usually with cash or hard money)
Rehab — renovate to increase the property's after-repair value (ARV)
Rent — place a tenant to generate rental income and establish the property as a performing asset
Refinance — do a cash-out refinance based on the new ARV, pulling out your invested capital
Repeat — use the extracted cash to buy the next property and do it again

The goal is to end up with a cash-flowing rental property with little to none of your original capital still locked in it. Done right, you can theoretically build a portfolio indefinitely with a finite pool of capital — because you keep recycling the same dollars.

When BRRRR Works

You can buy at 60–75% of ARV (after rehab value)
The property cash flows after the refinance loan payment
Your rehab estimate is accurate (the biggest variable)
You have access to short-term capital (cash, hard money, HELOC) for the acquisition
The rental market supports rents that cover the new mortgage at 75% LTV

When BRRRR Fails

Rehab costs blow out beyond what the ARV can support
The appraisal comes in below your projected ARV
The refinanced loan has a payment that eats all cash flow
You can't find a tenant at rent levels that justify the numbers
Market conditions shift during a long rehab

This is why a detailed spreadsheet model — run before you make an offer — is not optional. It's the difference between a deliberate investment and an expensive experiment.

The Math That Makes or Breaks a BRRRR Deal

There are three mathematical gates every BRRRR deal must pass:

Gate 1: Can You Buy at the Right Price?

The Maximum Allowable Offer (MAO) formula tells you the most you should pay:

MAO = (ARV × 0.70) − Rehab Costs Example: ARV = $250,000 Rehab = $35,000 MAO = ($250,000 × 0.70) − $35,000 = $175,000 − $35,000 = $140,000

The 70% rule is conservative — it preserves enough equity for the refinance to pull your capital back out. Some investors use 75% in competitive markets, but that leaves less margin for error.

Gate 2: Does the Refinance Pull Your Capital Back?

After rehab, a lender will typically refinance at 70–75% LTV of the appraised ARV. Your goal is for that loan amount to equal or exceed your total cash invested:

Refi Loan Amount = ARV × LTV (typically 0.75) Total Cash In = Purchase Price + Rehab + Closing Costs (buy) + Carrying Costs Deal Grade: — Refi Amount ≥ Total Cash In → "All In" (full capital recycle) — Refi Amount ≥ 80% of Total Cash In → "Good" (minor capital left in) — Refi Amount < 75% of Total Cash In → "Stuck" (significant equity trapped)

Gate 3: Does It Cash Flow After Refi?

The refinanced loan has a new monthly payment. The property must still generate positive cash flow after that payment, plus vacancy, maintenance, property management, insurance, and taxes:

Monthly Cash Flow = Gross Rent − Vacancy Reserve (typically 8–10%) − Property Management (8–10%) − Maintenance Reserve (5–10%) − Insurance − Property Tax − New Mortgage Payment (from cash-out refi) Cash-on-Cash Return = (Annual Cash Flow / Cash Left In) × 100

If your cash-out refi fully recycled your capital, your cash-on-cash return is technically infinite (no capital in). In practice, most deals leave some capital in — aim for 10–15%+ cash-on-cash on whatever remains.

Your 5-Tab BRRRR Calculator Structure

Tab	What It Models	Key Output
1. Inputs	All deal variables in one place	Single input source for all formulas
2. Acquisition & Rehab	Total cash deployed before refinance	Total Cost Basis, MAO check
3. Rental Analysis	Post-rehab income and expenses	Monthly NOI, gross yield
4. Refinance	Refi loan amount, cash pulled out, equity left	Capital recycled %, cash left in deal
5. Returns Dashboard	Full deal scorecard	CoC return, equity, deal verdict

Track Your Rental Property Performance Year-Round

Our Google Sheets templates include income and expense trackers, ROI calculators, and financial dashboards built for landlords and real estate investors.

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Tab 2: Acquisition & Rehab

This tab calculates everything you spend from the time you make an offer until the property is ready for a tenant.

Input	Description	Typical Range
Purchase Price	What you paid for the property	60–75% of ARV
Purchase Closing Costs	Title, attorney, transfer tax, lender fees	1–3% of purchase
Hard Money Points & Fees	Origination points, underwriting, appraisal	2–4% of loan amount
Rehab Budget	Total renovation cost (materials + labor)	Varies widely
Rehab Contingency	Buffer for overruns — never skip this	10–20% of rehab budget
Carrying Costs	Hard money interest during rehab + holding costs	Rehab months × monthly interest
Utilities During Rehab	Electric, gas, water while vacant	$150–400/month
Insurance (Vacant)	Builders risk or vacant property insurance	Higher than standard

The total of all these inputs is your Total Cash Invested (TCI) — the number your refinance needs to recover.

MAO Check Formula

=(B_ARV * 0.70) - B_Rehab_Total — If Purchase Price ≤ MAO → "✅ Price is within MAO" — If Purchase Price > MAO → "⚠️ Price exceeds 70% rule — verify ARV" Status formula: =IF(B_PurchasePrice <= ((B_ARV*0.70)-B_RehabTotal), "✅ Within MAO", "⚠️ Exceeds MAO — review deal")

Tab 3: Rental Analysis (Post-Rehab)

This tab models the property's income and expenses as a stabilized rental — after rehab is complete and the tenant is in place.

Item	Monthly Input	Notes
Gross Monthly Rent	Market rent (use Zillow, Rentometer)	What tenants are paying nearby
Vacancy Rate	8–10% of gross rent	Use 10% for conservative analysis
Property Management	8–10% of collected rent	Skip if self-managing — but account for your time
Maintenance Reserve	5–10% of gross rent	Older homes: use 10%
Property Tax	Annual tax ÷ 12	Use post-rehab assessed value estimate
Insurance	Annual premium ÷ 12	Landlord policy, not homeowner
HOA (if applicable)	Monthly dues	—
Utilities (if paid by owner)	Water, trash, etc.	Common in multifamily
Other Expenses	Lawn, snow, misc.	—

NOI Before Debt Service

Effective Gross Income = Gross Rent × (1 - Vacancy Rate) Operating Expenses = Mgmt + Maintenance + Tax + Insurance + HOA + Utilities NOI = Effective Gross Income - Operating Expenses Cap Rate (post-rehab) = (NOI × 12) / ARV × 100

Track NOI before debt service separately. It's the property's income before financing costs — the metric that appraisers and lenders use to value the property for your refinance.

Tab 4: Refinance Calculator

This is the heart of the BRRRR model. It answers: after the refi, how much capital do I have back, and does the deal still cash flow?

Refinance Inputs

Input	Description
After-Repair Value (ARV)	Appraised value post-rehab (estimate conservatively)
Lender LTV	75% is typical for cash-out refi on investment property
New Interest Rate	Current 30-year investment property rate (check current rates)
Loan Term	30 years (most common) or 20/15
Refi Closing Costs	Typically 2–4% of loan amount
Months of Seasoning	How long before lender allows refi (typically 6–12 months)

Refinance Output Calculations

Refi Loan Amount = ARV × LTV Cash Out (Gross) = Refi Loan Amount - Purchase Price Payoff (hard money balance) Cash Out (Net) = Cash Out (Gross) - Refi Closing Costs Cash Left In Deal = Total Cash Invested - Cash Out (Net) Capital Recycled % = (Cash Out Net / Total Cash Invested) × 100 Monthly Payment (new mortgage) = PMT(rate/12, term*12, -loan_amount) New Monthly Cash Flow = NOI - New Monthly Payment New Annual Cash Flow = New Monthly Cash Flow × 12 Cash-on-Cash Return = New Annual Cash Flow / Cash Left In Deal × 100

PMT Formula in Google Sheets

=PMT(B_InterestRate/12, B_LoanTerm*12, -B_LoanAmount) Example: =PMT(0.075/12, 30*12, -187500) = $1,311/month (at 7.5% on $187,500 loan)

2026 rate note: Investment property mortgage rates in 2026 are running 7–8% for 30-year conventional loans (roughly 0.5–0.75% above primary residence rates). At these levels, cash flow after a cash-out refi is tight in most markets. Model conservatively — use 7.5–8% in your calculator and verify with current lender quotes before making offers.

Tab 5: Returns Dashboard

The dashboard tab pulls everything together into a single deal scorecard:

Metric	Your Deal	Good Threshold
Purchase Price	[auto-fill from inputs]	≤ MAO
Total Cash Invested	[calculated]	—
ARV	[input]	25%+ above purchase
Refi Loan Amount	[calculated]	≥ 90% of Cash Invested
Cash Left In Deal	[calculated]	Aim for $0–$10K
Capital Recycled %	[calculated]	90%+ = great BRRRR
Monthly Cash Flow (post-refi)	[calculated]	≥ $200/month
Cash-on-Cash Return	[calculated]	≥ 10% on capital left in
Cap Rate (post-rehab)	[calculated]	≥ 6%
Gross Rent Multiplier	[calculated]	≤ 12×
Deal Verdict	[formula below]	✅ Green Light

Deal Verdict Formula

=IFS( AND(B_CapitalRecycled >= 0.90, B_MonthlyCashFlow >= 200, B_PurchasePrice <= B_MAO), "✅ Green Light — Strong BRRRR", AND(B_CapitalRecycled >= 0.75, B_MonthlyCashFlow >= 100), "🟡 Proceed with Caution — Tight Numbers", B_CapitalRecycled < 0.70, "🔴 Pass — Capital Trapped, Check ARV/Rehab", B_MonthlyCashFlow < 0, "🔴 Pass — Negative Cash Flow After Refi", TRUE, "🟡 Review Numbers — Edge Case" )

Key Formulas Summary

— MAO (70% Rule) — =B_ARV * 0.70 - B_RehabTotal — Total Cash Invested — =B_PurchasePrice + B_PurchaseClosingCosts + B_HardMoneyFees + B_RehabTotal + B_RehabContingency + B_CarryingCosts — NOI (Monthly) — =B_GrossRent*(1-B_VacancyRate) - B_Mgmt - B_Maintenance - B_Tax - B_Insurance — Refi Loan Amount — =B_ARV * B_LTV — Monthly Mortgage Payment — =PMT(B_Rate/12, B_Term*12, -B_LoanAmount) — Net Cash Out — =B_RefiLoanAmount - B_HardMoneyPayoff - B_RefiClosingCosts — Cash Left In Deal — =B_TotalCashInvested - B_NetCashOut — Capital Recycled % — =B_NetCashOut / B_TotalCashInvested — Monthly Cash Flow (post-refi) — =B_MonthlyNOI - B_MonthlyPayment — Cash-on-Cash Return — =(B_MonthlyCashFlow*12) / B_CashLeftInDeal

Worked Example: $180K Purchase in a Mid-Tier Market

Let's run a real deal through the calculator. A 3BR/1BA single-family home in a Midwest market.

Acquisition & Rehab

Item	Amount
Purchase Price	$110,000
Purchase Closing Costs (2%)	$2,200
Hard Money Fees (3 points)	$3,300
Rehab Budget	$42,000
Rehab Contingency (15%)	$6,300
Carrying Costs (6 months × $900)	$5,400
Total Cash Invested	$169,200

Rental Analysis (Post-Rehab)

Item	Monthly
Gross Rent	$1,650
Vacancy (9%)	−$149
Property Management (9%)	−$149
Maintenance Reserve (8%)	−$132
Property Tax	−$175
Insurance	−$95
Monthly NOI	$950

Refinance

Item	Amount
ARV (appraised)	$235,000
Refi LTV (75%)	75%
Refi Loan Amount	$176,250
Less: Hard Money Payoff	−$110,000
Less: Refi Closing Costs (2.5%)	−$4,406
Net Cash Out	$61,844
Total Cash Invested	$169,200
Cash Left In Deal	$107,356
Capital Recycled	37% — Not enough

🔴 Deal Verdict: Reconsider — Capital Trapped

At $169,200 total invested and only $61,844 pulled out via refi, 63% of capital remains trapped in the deal. The purchase price needs to drop to ~$75,000–80,000 or the ARV needs to be higher for this to be a true BRRRR. The NOI is solid — this is a fine buy-and-hold, but it doesn't recycle capital efficiently enough for the BRRRR strategy.

The Adjusted Deal (Purchase at $78,000)

What if you negotiate the purchase to $78,000?

Item	Amount
Total Cash Invested (revised)	$137,200
Refi Loan Amount (same ARV)	$176,250
Net Cash Out	$84,844
Cash Left In Deal	$52,356
Capital Recycled	62% — Better
Monthly Cash Flow After Refi	$950 − $1,183 = −$233

🔴 Still Fails Gate 3: Negative Cash Flow After Refi

At 7.5% on $176,250, the monthly payment is ~$1,232. That's $282 more than the $950 monthly NOI. The property cannot support the refinance debt at current rates. This illustrates the key challenge with BRRRR in 2026 — even deals with good equity struggle to cash flow after a refi at 7–8% rates. You need to find higher-rent markets, lower purchase prices, or accept partial capital recycling.

The 2026 reality check: High interest rates compress BRRRR returns significantly. The strategy works best when you can find deeply discounted properties (50–60% of ARV) in markets with strong rent-to-price ratios, or when you have access to seller financing and other creative structures that bypass conventional refi rates. Your spreadsheet will tell you fast if a deal has a chance — run the numbers before you get emotionally attached to a property.

5 BRRRR Mistakes That Kill Deals

1. Inflating the ARV

ARV is the entire foundation of the BRRRR model. If your ARV is wrong, every other number is wrong. Get three comps from an investor-friendly agent or appraiser before you make an offer. Use the lower end of your comp range — not the higher. A $15,000 ARV overestimate can trap $11,000+ of capital in the deal (at 75% LTV).

2. Underestimating Rehab Costs

Scope creep is the #1 budget killer in rental rehabs. Foundation issues, knob-and-tube wiring, mold behind walls, plumbing cast iron that's 80 years old — these things don't show up in casual walkthroughs. Always include a 15–20% contingency in your model, and get a detailed scope of work from your contractor before closing. "About $30K" is not a rehab budget — a line-item estimate is.

3. Ignoring the Seasoning Period

Most conventional lenders require 6–12 months of title seasoning before allowing a cash-out refinance on investment property. Some require the property to be rented and showing income for 2–3 months. This means your capital is locked up for 6–12 months minimum. Model carrying costs (hard money interest or opportunity cost) for the full seasoning period — not just the rehab phase.

4. Using the Appraised Value Before Refi Exists

Your ARV projection is just that — a projection. The actual refi appraisal may come in lower, especially if the appraiser uses distressed comps or the market shifted during your rehab. Always model a downside scenario: what happens if the ARV comes in 10% below your projection? If that scenario breaks the deal, you're operating without a safety margin.

5. Forgetting Post-Refi Cash Flow Gate

Many BRRRR investors obsess over capital recycling and forget to ask: does this property still cash flow after the new mortgage payment? A property that recycles 95% of your capital is worthless if the remaining $10K earns you −$200/month. Both gates — capital recycling AND post-refi cash flow — must pass for a deal to qualify as a true BRRRR.

Track Your Rental Income & Expenses After You Buy

Once you've closed your BRRRR deal, you need a system to track rent, expenses, and cash flow. Our Freelancer Financial Dashboard is built for income tracking, expense categorization, and financial visibility — on Etsy for instant download.

Get the Template on Etsy →

Setting Up Your BRRRR Tracker for Multiple Deals

Once you've done one BRRRR deal, the model becomes reusable. Add a "Deal Comparison" tab that lists all your deals with key metrics side by side — ARV, capital recycled, cash-on-cash return, monthly cash flow. This lets you see at a glance which deals performed and which ones trapped capital, and it informs your criteria for the next acquisition.

The investors who scale BRRRR portfolios successfully aren't necessarily smarter — they're more systematic. They run every deal through the same model, they have consistent criteria, and they walk away from deals that don't clear all three gates. Your Google Sheets calculator is what makes that discipline automatic.