Rehab Budget Calculator

Scope of work

Line items

Work item	Area	Cost	Remove

Contingency and carrying costs

Contingency

Reserve for surprises such as rot, wiring or code upgrades.

Permits and fees

Project length (months)

Holding cost per month

Utilities, insurance, property tax and similar costs while the work runs.

Deal check

After-repair value

Optional: shows the highest purchase price under the 70% rule.

Total rehab budget —

Line items: —
Contingency reserve: —
Holding costs: —
Max purchase price (70% rule): —

Where the budget goes

The chart appears with your result

A rehab budget is the sum of every repair line item plus a contingency reserve, permits and the costs of holding the property during the work. A $32,000 scope with a 10% reserve, $1,500 in permits and four months at $1,200 comes to $41,500.

About this tool

Flippers, landlords buying a fixer-upper and owners planning a renovation all face the same question before signing: what will the whole job cost? Enter each repair as a row with its area and quoted price, choose a contingency percentage, and add permits and monthly carrying costs. The calculator totals the budget, shows how much each item contributes, and splits the money by area in a donut chart you can download as PNG, SVG or CSV. With an after-repair value it also applies the 70% rule to show the highest purchase price that leaves room for profit. The numbers are only as good as the quotes you enter; it cannot estimate what a contractor will charge in your area.

How to use it

List the work
Add one row per repair with a name, the area it belongs to and its quoted cost. Use Add line item for more rows.
Set the contingency
Drag the slider or type a percentage for the reserve held against surprises.
Add carrying costs
Enter permit fees, the project length in months and the monthly holding cost.
Check the deal
Optionally type the after-repair value to see the 70% rule purchase ceiling.

Examples

Kitchen, bath and roof on a $200,000 flip

Line items: Kitchen × kitchen_bath × 15000; Bathroom × kitchen_bath × 8000; Roof × exterior × 9000
Contingency: 10
Permits and fees: 1500
Project length: 4
Holding cost per month: 1200
After-repair value: 200000

Result Total rehab budget: $41,500
Line items: $32,000
Contingency reserve: $3,200
Holding costs: $4,800
Max purchase price (70% rule): $98,500

Line items = $32,000.00
Contingency = $32,000.00 × 10% = $3,200.00
Holding = 4 months × $1,200.00 = $4,800.00
Total = line items + contingency + permits $1,500.00 + holding = $41,500.00
70% rule: 0.7 × $200,000.00 − $41,500.00 = $98,500.00

Three line items total $32,000. A 10% reserve, permits and four months of holding costs lift the budget to $41,500, which caps the purchase price at $98,500 under the 70% rule.

One flooring job

Line items: Flooring × interior × 10000
Contingency: 15

Result Total rehab budget: $11,500
Line items: $10,000
Contingency reserve: $1,500
Holding costs: $0

Line items = $10,000.00
Contingency = $10,000.00 × 15% = $1,500.00
Holding = 0 months × $0.00 = $0.00
Total = line items + contingency + permits $0.00 + holding = $11,500.00

A $10,000 flooring quote with a 15% reserve needs a $11,500 budget.

How it is calculated

Total = Σ items + Σ items × c ÷ 100 + permits + months × monthly holding; Max price = 0.7 × ARV − Total

Σ items: sum of all line-item costs
c: contingency percentage
months: length of the project
ARV: expected market value once the repairs are done

Line items are added together first. The contingency is a percentage of that sum only, not of permits or holding costs. Holding costs are the monthly figure times the number of months. The 70% rule is an investor rule of thumb: pay no more than 70% of the after-repair value minus the rehab budget, leaving the other 30% for selling costs and profit. It is a screen, not a valuation.

Sources

Publication 551, Basis of Assets — Internal Revenue Service

When not to use it

Before you have contractor quotes or a walkthrough, since guessed line items make the total meaningless.
For valuing a property, because the 70% rule is a screening shortcut, not an appraisal.
For tax basis records, where receipts and the IRS rules on repairs versus improvements decide what counts.

Common mistakes

Skipping the contingency, then finding rot or old wiring once the walls are open.
Forgetting utilities, insurance and property tax that keep running while the house sits empty.
Using the current as-is value in place of the after-repair value for the 70% rule.

Frequently asked questions

How much contingency should a rehab budget carry?

Many investors hold 10% to 20% of the repair cost. Older houses, cosmetic estimates made without opening walls, and jobs touching plumbing or electrics lean towards the high end. The calculator warns when the reserve is under 10%.

What is the 70% rule in house flipping?

It caps the purchase price at 70% of the after-repair value minus the rehab budget. For a $200,000 ARV and a $41,500 budget, the ceiling is $140,000 − $41,500 = $98,500. The remaining 30% is meant to cover selling costs, closing costs and profit.

What counts as a holding cost?

Anything you pay just to own the property while work is under way: utilities, insurance, property tax, HOA dues and security. Enter their combined monthly amount and the number of months the project will take.

Is the contingency applied to permits too?

No. Here the reserve is a percentage of the line items only, because permit fees and monthly holding costs are known in advance and do not usually overrun the way construction work does.

Why group items by area?

The area choice drives the donut chart, so you can see whether kitchens and baths, the exterior, systems such as HVAC and plumbing, or interior finishes take the largest slice. It does not change the total.

Are rehab costs deductible?

For a rental or investment property, improvements are generally added to the property's basis rather than deducted at once, while routine repairs may be treated differently. IRS Publication 551 explains basis; a tax professional can classify specific items.