Rental Deal Math, Explained
Short, practical guides to the numbers that decide whether a rental listing is a deal — the same metrics CashFlowPanel computes on every Zillow and Redfin listing.
- How to Analyze a Rental Property on Zillow, Step by Step
The five-step screening method: pull the listing numbers, ground the rent in comps, count every cost, and let break-even rent call the deal.
- Break-Even Rent: The First Number to Check on Any Rental Deal
One number tells you how much room a deal has before it loses money every month. The formula, a worked example, and screening thresholds.
- Cap Rate vs. Cash-on-Cash Return: Which Metric Should Drive the Decision?
One is unlevered and compares properties; the other is levered and judges your actual deal. How the two metrics split — and when each one should win.
- What Is a Good Cash-on-Cash Return on a Rental Property?
The formula, honest benchmarks at today’s interest rates, and the three assumption mistakes that quietly inflate the number.
- The Rental Property Calculator That Lives Where You Search: Chrome Extensions vs. Spreadsheets
Spreadsheets and web calculators break down at screening volume. What an on-page calculator has to do, and a checklist for picking one.
- Redfin Rent Estimate: How to Turn the Rent Number Into a Deal Decision
A rent estimate is a starting point, not a verdict. Verify the comps, add the full cost stack, and calculate the rent the property actually needs.
- Zillow Rental Property Calculator: Go From Listing to Cash Flow
Use the listing facts, verify the Rent Zestimate, count every operating cost, and calculate the four metrics that decide whether the deal works.