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Investing Strategies
Same property, different strategy, different outcome. BRRRR recycles your capital; a house hack gets you in for less; Section 8 trades a process for stability. These guides compare the plays; the analyzer scores any of them.
Guides
The BRRRR method in 2026: the complete numbers walkthrough
Buy, rehab, rent, refinance, repeat — with real 2026 numbers. One full deal start to finish: refinance LTV limits, seasoning rules, DSCR qualification, and the two constraints on your cash-out most guides skip.
11 min readHouse hacking explained: how to (almost) live for free in a 2-4 unit
The actual math behind house hacking — FHA 3.5% down, owner-occupant rules, year-2 transition planning, and the deal types that make this strategy work in 2026.
9 min readIs a duplex a good investment? The same $400,000 building, underwritten as a rental and as a house hack
A duplex is not one investment, it is two, and the loan application decides which you get. Conventional financing wants 25% down on a 2-4 unit investment purchase and 5% owner-occupied — $138,140 of cash for a $277-a-month loss, or $44,990 to live there at $389 a month above rent while building $4,050 of equity. Includes the year-2 problem (the 5%-down duplex loses $974 a month once you move out), the head-to-head against a same-priced single-family the duplex wins on cap rate 5.31% to 4.09%, and the $1,840 a year that two units under one roof genuinely save.
13 min readSection 8 rentals: how the math actually works in 2026 (pros, cons, underwriting)
How the voucher program actually pays — payment standards, FMR math, the two ceilings on your rent, NSPIRE inspection costs, and the five underwriting adjustments that decide whether Section 8 makes a deal better or worse.
11 min readSingle-family vs multi-family rental property — which actually wins?
The honest comparison: cash flow, cap rate, financing, tenant quality, exit liquidity, capex risk, and which property type fits your specific stage. Side-by-side numbers with 2026 financing.
11 min readHow to estimate rehab costs on a rental property — the honest framework
The framework experienced investors use: sq-ft pricing for cosmetic, kitchen, bath, systems work. Plus the 25% contingency rule and on-site walkthrough checklist.
12 min readHow to find off-market rental properties — 8 sources that actually work
The 8 sources serious rental investors use to find off-market deals — driving for dollars, direct mail, wholesalers, networking, public records, and the underrated channels most investors skip.
10 min readShould I use a property management company? The actual math.
8-10% of rent + lease-up fees + maintenance markup — does paying a PM still beat managing yourself? The honest break-even math, plus when to switch each direction.
8 min readHouse hack underwriting: how to know if a duplex, triplex, or fourplex actually beats renting
House hacking sounds great in a podcast and confusing in a spreadsheet. The honest math: your housing cost vs. renting the equivalent, factoring in down payment, mortgage paydown, appreciation, and the very real cost of being your tenants' landlord.
12 min readShort-term rental underwriting playbook: how to model an Airbnb in 2026
STR cash flow lives or dies on three numbers: ADR, occupancy, and operating expenses. Here's the full playbook for underwriting a short-term rental in 2026 — what data sources to use, what hidden costs everyone forgets, and how to stress-test for a bad off-season.
14 min readThe 70% rule for house flipping (and BRRRR): how to calculate your max offer (2026)
The fastest offer screen in real estate — pay 70% of after-repair value, minus repairs — and what it's really doing under the hood. The Maximum Allowable Offer formula worked on a $300K flip, a full P&L that shows where the 30% spread actually goes ($37,800 of costs, $52,200 of profit), the price-per-sqft comp method for pinning down ARV against the neighborhood ceiling, the BRRRR twist where the same 70% cap dovetails with a 75% cash-out refinance, and the backward solve that lands within $2,000 of the rule — plus the cheap-house and long-rehab cases where 70% quietly lies.
11 min readCalculators for this
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