Property tax is the expense most investors get wrong when analyzing rental cash flow.
The national average is about 1.1%. But county-by-county variation is massive:
- Cuyahoga County (Cleveland): 1.89%
- Mecklenburg County (Charlotte): 0.83%
- Buncombe County (Asheville): 0.65%
On a $250K property, the difference between 0.65% and 1.89% is $3,100/year. That is $258/month — often the entire cash flow margin.
I learned this the hard way on my second deal. Budgeted 1% for taxes on a Cleveland property. Actual rate: 1.89%. Wiped out my projected $150/month cash flow and then some.
Now I check the county assessor website before I even look at photos. Tax rate first, photos second.
Free calculators I use for all of this:
- Hard Money Calculator — hard money loan costs
- BRRRR Calculator — buy-rehab-rent-refinance-repeat analysis
- Rehab Cost Estimator — renovation budget by room
- Cash-on-Cash Calculator — return on actual cash invested
- Fix and Flip Calculator — flip profit with holding costs
Everything at arvcalc.com. No signup, no paywall.
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