A five-minute check: your path, your equity, and whether a specific property actually makes sense. Nothing is saved anywhere but your own browser.
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YOUR PATH
What kind of investor are you?
Four paths. Each one works. The right questions depend on which one is yours — so pick the one that fits best.
A
Long-Term Rental
Buy a house, rent it on a 12-month lease, hold for years. Tenants pay down your mortgage while the property appreciates. The lowest-risk way to start.
B
Short-Term Rental
Airbnb or VRBO. Much higher gross income, much higher operating costs, real regulatory risk. Verify your city allows it before anything else.
C
Fix & Flip
Buy distressed, renovate in three to nine months, resell at ARV. Fast money, no tenants, but high risk and short-term capital gains. Financed with cash, hard money, private money, owner financing — or a careful subject-to.
D
House-Hack
Buy a 2–4 unit property or a home with a basement apartment. Live in one unit, rent the others. Qualify for FHA 3.5% or Conv 5% down — the cheapest way in.
Can your home equity fund the deal?
If you own your home, you may already have the capital you need — without touching your savings. Two paths: HELOC or cash-out refi.
Home equity is the part of your home you own outright: current value minus what you still owe. Lenders typically let you tap up to 80% of your home's value, keeping a 20% cushion for safety.
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What a buyer would pay today (Zillow or your agent's estimate is fine)
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What you still owe (check your last statement)
OPTION A
HELOC
A line of credit secured by your home. Variable rate. Interest-only during the draw period (usually 10 years). You keep your current mortgage — great if your current rate is low. Borrow only what you use.
EST. INTEREST-ONLY PAYMENT ON MAX DRAW
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OPTION B
Cash-Out Refinance
Replaces your entire mortgage with a new, larger one — you get the difference as cash at closing. Fixed rate, 30-year reset. Simpler, but you lose your current rate if it's lower than today's.
EST. NEW FULL MONTHLY PAYMENT
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Does the rental actually make sense?
Live metrics, each judged against the right benchmark for your market. The deal passes or fails on the numbers.
SUGGESTED STARTER — BASED ON YOUR MARKET AND EQUITY
Price point
$465,000
Monthly rent
$2,500/mo
Monthly taxes
$350/mo
Typical range for this market. Add your equity in Step 2 for a personalized suggestion.
Thresholds change by market — a 5% cap in Buckhead is normal; a 5% cap in rural Georgia is a bad deal.
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25% is typical for investor loans. 3.5–5% works for house-hack.
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Investor rates run ~0.5–0.75% above owner-occupant
Your agent walked you through BRRETA and Fair Housing
Auto-walk triggers — no matter what the other numbers say
Flood zone AE/VE with no elevation certificate
Known foundation, slab, or major structural issues
HOA with pending special assessment
Short-term rental ban or pending ordinance
Negative cash flow at month one
Does this flip actually pencil?
Flips live or die by three numbers: ARV, rehab, and how fast you get out. We'll run the 70% Rule, every financing option, and your real net profit after all costs.
Reminder:Flipping profit is short-term capital gains, taxed as ordinary income. Talk to your CPA before you close.
Days-on-market, buyer pool, and resale price per sq ft are very different across these.
THE DEAL
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What it sells for AFTER rehab — back it with 3+ sold comps in last 90 days, within 1 mile, same bed/bath.
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Your contract price — not the list price.
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Line-itemed scope of work from a licensed GC — not a guess.
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% of rehab for surprises (15% minimum, 20% on older homes).
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Purchase close → sold close. Add 60 days to your optimistic guess.
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Both sides, post-settlement. BRRETA requires written buyer agreements.
HOW ARE YOU PAYING FOR IT?
Cash
No lender. No points. All your money at risk.
Hard Money
10–12% rate + 2–3 pts. 65–75% LTC. Fast close.
Private Money
Family, friend, investor. Your terms.
Owner Financing
Seller holds the note. Best when seller owns free-and-clear.
Subject-To
Take over seller's existing loan. Powerful — and risky.
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% of (purchase + rehab) the lender will fund. Hard money: 65–75%.
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Hard money: 10–12%. Private: 6–10% depending on relationship.
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Paid at close. 1 point = 1% of loan amount.
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Title, attorney, intangible tax. ~2–3% of purchase.
Owner financing is a seller-held note.The seller plays the bank. Great when they own free-and-clear and want monthly income instead of a lump sum. Georgia requires it to go through a licensed attorney with Dodd-Frank-safe terms. If the seller still has a mortgage, this triggers their due-on-sale clause — see Subject-To below for the same risk.
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Lower than bank — no lender fees, but attorney still required.
Subject-To is powerful — and legally loaded.You take title. The seller's loan stays in their name. You make the payments.
Know these before you touch it:
Due-on-Sale clause. Every conventional loan has one. Transferring title gives the lender the legal right to call the entire loan due immediately. It's rare but it happens — especially when rates rise and lenders look for ways out of low-rate loans.
Insurance. The seller's policy won't cover you after transfer. You need a new policy, named additionally insured correctly, or a Garn-St. Germain-compliant structure.
Escrow. Taxes and insurance paid through the seller's escrow create accounting messes. Most sub-to deals pull escrow and pay direct.
Fraud risk. Lying to the lender about ownership change is fraud. Don't. Full disclosure through a real estate attorney is the only clean path.
Agent compliance. If you're a Georgia licensee, you must disclose your interest and get broker approval. Review your office policy manual.
Only do this with: a real-estate attorney, a title company that writes sub-to, written seller disclosure, and a plan if the loan gets called.
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What you'll pay the lender every month on the seller's behalf.
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What the seller walks away with — often their equity, moving costs, or arrears cure.
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HOLDING COSTS (monthly, during rehab + marketing)
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LIVE DEAL METER
70% Rule — Maximum Allowable Offer—
Loan amount—
Cash to close—
Monthly carrying cost—
All-in project cost—
Selling costs at ARV—
Projected net profit—
ROI on cash invested—
Annualized ROI—
What makes a good flip?
Purchase at or below the 70% Rule MAO: (ARV × 0.70) − Rehab
Minimum $30,000 net profit (not revenue) after ALL costs
Minimum 15% ROI on cash invested — ideally 20%+
Rehab budget ≤ 25% of ARV (above that, you're a developer, not a flipper)
Three sold comps in last 90 days inside 1 mile at or above your ARV
Clear exit: an agent who understands retail buyers in that neighborhood
Auto-walk triggers — flips
Fewer than 3 supporting comps for your ARV
Rehab scope requires structural, foundation, or septic work you haven't budgeted
Permits required but not pulled or priced
Days on market trending UP in subject neighborhood (resale will stall)
Flood zone, slab heave, active termites, or failed septic
Negative net profit at your realistic holding period (not your best-case)
If this flip fails — your exit plans
Pivot to rental. Finish the rehab, lease at market rent, refinance into a long-term loan (BRRRR). Only works if the rent-to-value supports it in that market.
Wholesale the contract. If you haven't closed yet, assign to another investor at a discount. Georgia requires wholesaler disclosure.
Lease-option. List as rent-to-own at retail. Slower but keeps cash flow positive.
Cut and sell to another flipper. Take the loss, free the capital, move on. Discipline beats pride.
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Running the numbers...
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Breakdown
What to do next
Remember:This is a planning tool. Your lender, CPA, and real estate attorney run the real numbers. For Fix & Flip especially — talk to all three BEFORE you make an offer.