BrickAtlasCalculatorsHouse hack
House hack calculator
Live in one unit. Subtract rent from the others from the mortgage and operating costs. This is the effective housing cost on a BrickAtlas house-hack memo.
Calculate effective housing cost
Enter a 2–4 unit purchase, an owner-occupy down payment, and rent for one unit you will not live in. The housing cost updates as you type.
Purchase and loan
Rent from units you do not live in
Annual operating costs
Percent of other-unit rent
Effective housing cost
-$148
$1,199 mortgage + $753 operating costs − $2,100 from the other unit. Below zero, those units cover housing and leave cash flow.
- Mortgage
- $1,199
- Operating costs
- $753
- Rent from other units
- $2,100
- Housing offset
- 108%
- Net cash flow
- $148
- Down payment
- $9,250
- Rehab in cash required
- $17,500
- Purchase closing
- $5,550
- Cash required
- $32,300
- Cash-on-cash
- 5.5%
How effective housing cost is calculated
Effective housing cost = mortgage + operating costs − rent from other units
You live in one unit. Rent from the other units is market rent per rented unit times units minus one. Operating costs are property taxes, insurance, HOA, and land or lot rent, plus maintenance and management on that other-unit rent only. The mortgage uses the owner-occupy down payment. The default down payment is 5% of the purchase price. Below zero, the other units cover housing and leave monthly cash flow.
The sample is a 2-unit owner-occupy at $185,000 with 5% down. Rent from the other unit is $2,100. Mortgage plus operating costs minus that rent is an effective housing cost of -$148.
Vacancy stays out
This screen does not haircut other-unit rent for vacancy. Analyst’s house-hack model treats that rent as collected. Lower the rent input when you want a vacancy buffer.
Cash required counts half the rehab
Cash required is the owner-occupy down payment, plus half the rehab budget, plus purchase closing. Purchase closing defaults to 3% of the price. A full rental underwrite counts the entire rehab budget.
Your unit’s rent stays out
The unit you live in does not pay you rent. Cash-on-cash here is annual net cash flow divided by cash required — the surplus after housing — not a landlord yield on every unit.
What this number doesn’t tell you
Effective housing cost says what it costs to live there after the other units pay. It does not prove you can occupy the property, that a unit will stay filled, or that the city belongs in the portfolio. BrickAtlas runs that loop after the screen: persona, metros, listings, then a strategy-aware Investment Memo.
The loan after you move out
Owner-occupy financing usually requires you to live there. When you leave, the empty unit has to rent too, and the deal becomes a normal rental. Analyst can compare that hold with the house hack on the same address.
A vacant unit
One empty rented unit can put the whole mortgage back on you. The housing cost assumes the other units pay. Underwrite the payment you can carry if they do not.
Whether this market fits
A cheap place to live in the wrong metro is still the wrong next investment. Explore ranks cities with Atlas Score and persona Match before you underwrite an address.
FAQ
- What is effective housing cost?
- Effective housing cost is the monthly mortgage plus operating costs, minus rent from the units you do not live in. A duplex with a $1,200 mortgage, $700 of operating costs, and $2,100 of rent from the other unit has an effective housing cost of −$200. BrickAtlas computes that figure in code.
- What down payment does this calculator use?
- An owner-occupy down payment, defaulting to 5% of the purchase price. You can change the percent. The rental calculators use the cash down payment on the deal instead. House-hack cash required also includes half the rehab budget and purchase closing, which defaults to 3% of price.
- Does the house hack calculator include vacancy?
- No. Rent from the other units is not reduced for vacancy, maintenance is a percent of that rent, and management is a percent of that rent. Taxes and insurance are for the whole property. Put a lower rent in if you want the screen to assume downtime.
- Is this the same house-hack math as BrickAtlas Analyst?
- Yes. Effective housing cost, rent from the other units, the mortgage, cash required, and cash-on-cash come from the house-hack strategy. On that memo, effective housing cost is the lead number and net cash flow is the surplus after the offset.
- What cash flow does BrickAtlas treat as strong?
- BrickAtlas marks monthly cash flow under $0 as weak, from $0 up to $200 as thin, and $200 or more as strong. Cash-on-cash under 5% is weak, from 5% up to 8% is acceptable, and 8% or higher is strong. The bands are a screen. Occupancy and market fit still decide the deal.
- Where should I go after a house-hack screen?
- If the housing cost fits, open Analyst on the address for a strategy comparison with a full rental, BRRRR, and a flip. If you are still choosing a city, start in Explore. The house hack guide walks the occupancy and vacancy checks this page leaves out.
See the house hack next to a full rental
Set a persona, explore metros that match, and underwrite the address with house hack, buy-and-hold, and the other strategies in one memo.
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