Free calculator + guide
Read time: 5 min Updated: May 2026 Applies to: Wholesale,
flip, Buy Rehab Rent Refinance Repeat
If your After Repair Value (ARV) is off, everything downstream is off. Your offer, your buyer's margin, your assignment fee. It does not matter how good the rest of your underwriting is.
The calculator below covers wholesale, flip, and Buy Rehab Rent Refinance Repeat (BRRRR) in one place. Switch modes without losing your numbers. The rest of this article covers the math, how to pull comps that hold up, and where deals usually go wrong.
The math behind the offer
Most wholesalers use some version of the 70% rule. It is not a magic number, it is just a rough way to make sure your buyer has enough room to cover their costs and still make money. The formula looks like this:
MAO = (ARV × 70%) − Repair Costs − Assignment Fee
70% is a starting point, not a ceiling. In tight markets with strong buyer demand, you might push to 75%. In slow or risky markets, 65% is safer. Know your buyer's criteria before you commit to any number.
Quick example
After Repair Value: $300,000, Repairs: $40,000, Your fee: $15,000
Maximum Allowable Offer (MAO) = ($300,000 × 70%) minus $40,000 minus $15,000 = $155,000
Open your negotiation around $147,000, roughly 5% under your maximum. That gives you room to move without giving the deal away.
That 30% buffer is not yours to spend. It covers your buyer's closing costs (around 3%), holding costs during the rehab (4 to 5%), selling costs when they list it (3%), and their actual profit margin on the flip (roughly 15 to 20%). Send them a deal that eats into that buffer and they will pass. They run their own numbers and they will spot it.
For a Buy Rehab Rent Refinance Repeat deal the same ARV logic applies, but the exit is a refinance instead of a sale. What matters there is how much capital you can pull back out through the cash-out refinance, and whether the rental income covers the new mortgage payment with enough left over. The calculator handles both.
Deal analysis
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Note: These calculations are estimates based on the average comp price. Actual profits may vary depending on market conditions, negotiation outcomes, and unforeseen repair needs.
Pulling comps that actually hold up
Your After Repair Value is only as good as the comps behind it. One bad comparable sale and your whole offer is built on a guess. Cash buyers pull their own comps before they close. If yours do not match, the deal dies or you renegotiate down. Here is what to filter on:
Filter | Where to start | How it actually works |
|---|---|---|
| Sold within | 3 to 6 months | 90 days is ideal in a moving market. In slower markets or rural areas with fewer sales, going back 6 months is normal. |
Distance from subject | Within a mile | Two streets over can mean a completely different price range. Neighborhood boundaries are real. |
| Square footage | Within 20% | Once you start adjusting for size beyond that range, the numbers get soft fast. |
| Bed and bath count | Same or plus/minus one | A three-bed two-bath does not comp against a four-bed three-bath without a real adjustment. |
| Condition | Renovated or retail ready | You are pricing what the property will be worth after work, not what it looks like today. |
| Number of comps | 3 or more | One or two comps is not a defensible number. You need at least three to have a real conversation with a buyer. |
In states like Texas, sale prices are not public record. Most free tools pull from public data, which in non-disclosure states is incomplete. If you are working deals there without verified Multiple Listing Service (MLS) data, you are working with gaps you might not see until a buyer pushes back. ChatARV pulls verified comparable sales in non-disclosure states. That is one of the main reasons people use it.
Where deals fall apart
01
Basing your ARV on public estimate tools
Free estimate tools pull from public records. In non-disclosure states that data has gaps, and the number can be meaningfully off. Any experienced buyer will recomp your deal themselves. If your ARV does not hold up, they will know before you finish your pitch.
02
Using the best comp instead of the right ones
It is tempting to anchor on the highest recent sale in the area. But that outlier probably had a pool, a bigger lot, or a full gut renovation. Use the average of your best three comparable sales, not the ceiling.
03
Light on the repair estimate
This one is common early on. A kitchen that looks like a cosmetic job turns into a full gut once you open a wall. When you are not sure, add a buffer. A low repair estimate that blows up kills the buyer's margin and your reputation on that deal.
04
Making offers without running the numbers first
On a motivated seller call, it is easy to get pulled into a number before you have done the math. Run your Maximum Allowable Offer before you pick up the phone. The deal works or it does not. That part is not negotiable.
Your job as a wholesaler is to do the preliminary underwriting for your buyer. If your ARV is sloppy, they will find out when they pull their own comps. That is not a conversation you want to have twice with the same buyer.
Questions people actually ask
What is the difference between After Repair Value and current market value?
Current market value is what the property would sell for today, as-is. After Repair Value is what it will sell for once it has been fully renovated to retail condition. Your buyer needs to see the After Repair Value because that is what their profit is based on, whether they are flipping it or refinancing it into a rental.
Do I always have to use 70%?
No. 70% is a starting point that most buyers are comfortable with in a normal market. In hot markets where buyers are competing hard, you might see deals move at 75% or even 80%. In slower markets, riskier rehabs, or areas with longer hold times, buyers want more buffer, so 65% is more realistic. The right number depends on who your buyer is and what their specific criteria look like.
How do I get comps without Multiple Listing Service access?
Your best options are: find an investor-friendly agent willing to pull comps on deals you bring them, use a tool like ChatARV that pulls verified sales data without requiring a license, or use county records and public sold data as a rough floor estimate. That last option is fine for a quick gut check, but do not lock up a deal based on it alone.
What is a reasonable assignment fee?
On most deals, $10,000 to $15,000 is a solid target. On larger properties where the After Repair Value is above $400,000, fees of $20,000 to $30,000 are common and still reasonable for the buyer. Where people get into trouble is padding the After Repair Value to create room for a bigger fee. Buyers catch it, and it poisons the relationship.
What makes a good Buy Rehab Rent Refinance Repeat deal?
A solid Buy Rehab Rent Refinance Repeat deal recaptures at least 90% of your invested capital through the refinance, leaves you with positive monthly cash flow after the new mortgage payment, and has a Debt Service Coverage Ratio (DSCR) above 1.2. Cash-on-cash return above 8% on remaining capital is a good benchmark. The calculator above shows these in the Buy Rehab Rent Refinance Repeat tab.
What Loan-to-Value ratio should I expect on a Buy Rehab Rent Refinance Repeat refinance?
Most conventional lenders offer 75% Loan-to-Value (LTV) on investment property cash-out refinances. The refinance appraisal often comes in slightly below your retail After Repair Value, so the calculator applies a 10% discount by default. You can adjust that to match what your lender is actually quoting you.
Need the comps to back up your number?
The calculator gives you the math. ChatARV pulls the actual comparable sales for any address, including non-disclosure states where public data alone is not enough. Type in an address and you have a defensible After Repair Value in under 60 seconds.