Fix and flip budget template
By Austin Frangoules | Updated | 6 min read
A fix and flip budget has six parts: the purchase, buyer closing costs, financing, the rehab with a contingency, monthly holding costs, and selling costs. Add them up, subtract the total from your ARV, and you have your expected profit. The template below lists every line with a planning default, then fills it in for a real-sized deal.
Why most flip budgets come up short
Most new flippers budget the purchase and the rehab and stop there. The deal then loses money in the lines they skipped: loan points, months of interest, utilities on a vacant house, agent commissions and seller credits. In the worked example below, those lines add up to more than half the rehab.
A full budget fixes that. It also gives you the number lenders and partners ask for first: total project cost. Every default below is a planning number that varies by market, lender and contractor. Replace each one with your own quotes as soon as you have them.
The fix and flip budget template
| Category | Line item | How to estimate | Your number |
|---|---|---|---|
| Acquisition | Purchase price | Contract price | |
| Acquisition | Inspection | About $500 | |
| Closing (buy) | Settlement, title search, recording | About $1,200 to $2,000 by state | |
| Closing (buy) | Lender's title policy | About 0.45% of the loan | |
| Closing (buy) | Recordation or transfer taxes | By state; some states charge on both the deed and the loan | |
| Financing | Points | 1 to 3 points; 2 is a common default | |
| Financing | Lender fees | About $1,500 | |
| Financing | Draw fees | About $150 per draw | |
| Financing | Interest | Rate x balance drawn, each month | |
| Rehab | Line items (demo, kitchen, baths, systems, flooring, paint) | Quantity x unit cost, or contractor bids | |
| Rehab | Permits and plans | About 2% of hard cost | |
| Rehab | Contingency | 10% to 25% by scope | |
| Holding (per month) | Property taxes | Annual tax rate x value / 12 | |
| Holding (per month) | Insurance (vacant or builder's risk) | About $125 to $200 | |
| Holding (per month) | Utilities | About $175 to $250 | |
| Holding (per month) | HOA, lawn, security, other | About $50 plus any HOA | |
| Selling | Agent commissions | About 5.5% of the sale price | |
| Selling | Seller concessions | About 1% of the sale price | |
| Selling | Seller transfer tax | By state, about 0.1% to 0.2% in many places | |
| Selling | Settlement and payoff fees | About $1,000 to $1,200 | |
| Selling | Staging (optional) | About $1,500 to $3,500 |
Acquisition and closing costs
The purchase price is easy. Buyer closing costs take more care because they change by state. Some states charge recordation tax on the deed and again on the deed of trust. Others charge only recording fees. If you finance, add the lender's title policy. Budget an inspection even if you plan to skip it, so the decision is yours.
Financing costs
A typical hard money loan funds most of the purchase and all of the rehab, then charges points up front and interest each month. The planning default here is 11% interest, 2 points, $1,500 in fees, 90% of the purchase and 100% of the rehab, capped at 75% of ARV. Rehab money is paid out in draws after the work is done, so you front each month's work.
Ask whether interest is charged on the drawn balance or on the full loan. Interest on the full loan, called Dutch interest, costs more on every deal with a big rehab.
Rehab lines and contingency
Build the rehab line by line from a walk-through, as covered in our guide on how to estimate rehab costs, then add a contingency. Planning defaults by scope are 10% for cosmetic and light work, 15% for medium, 20% for heavy and 25% for a gut, plus 5% for homes built before 1950 or with structural work. If the number is a signed contractor bid, 10% is a common default because the bid already prices the scope.
- Kitchen $18,000, appliances $3,500
- $21,500
- Two full baths at $10,000
- $20,000
- HVAC $9,000, water heater $1,800
- $10,800
- LVP 1,280 sqft at $5, paint 1,500 sqft at $3, fixtures 1,500 sqft at $1.50
- $13,150
- Demo (2 dumpsters at $650), landscaping $2,500, final clean $750
- $4,550
- Hard cost subtotal
- $70,000
- Permits and plans at 2%
- $1,400
- Rehab before contingency
- $71,400
- Contingency at 15% (medium scope)
- $10,710
Unit costs are planning defaults that vary by market and contractor.
Holding and selling costs
Holding costs run every month you own the house: taxes, insurance, utilities, HOA, lawn care and loan interest. Budget them per month, then multiply by the full timeline, from closing through the sale closing, not just the rehab. A medium rehab often takes about four months, and selling takes about two more.
Selling costs are the biggest line most people forget. Commissions near 5.5%, about 1% in seller concessions, transfer tax and settlement fees can reach 6% to 7% of the sale price.
Worked example: the full budget
Here is the template filled in. The house is a 1,500 sqft ranch bought for $175,000 with an ARV of $335,000, using the rehab above and hard money at the planning defaults. The timeline is 4 months of rehab and 2 months to sell.
| Category | Detail | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Acquisition | Purchase price | $175,000 |
| Closing (buy) | Settlement, title, recording, inspection, taxes | $3,800 |
| Financing | $228,900 loan: 2 points $4,578, fees $1,500, 4 draws $600, interest $10,953 | $17,631 |
| Rehab | Lines, permits and 15% contingency | $82,110 |
| Holding | $580 per month (taxes $180, insurance $150, utilities $200, other $50) x 6 | $3,480 |
| Selling | Commission 5.5% $18,425, concessions 1% $3,350, transfer tax $335, fees $1,000 | $23,110 |
| Total project cost | $305,131 |
- ARV (sale price)
- $335,000
- Total project cost
- -$305,131
- Net profit
- $29,869
- Margin on ARV: $29,869 / $335,000
- 8.9%
- Cash in: $17,500 down + $3,800 closing + $6,678 points and fees + $10,710 contingency + $10,953 interest + $3,480 holding
- $53,121
Interest is 11% a year on the drawn balance: $157,500 at closing, rising $17,850 with each of 4 monthly draws. Illustrative, not a quote or commitment to lend.
The ROI looks strong, but the dollars are thin. This deal clears about $30,000 on $305,000 of cost, a margin under 9%. A 10% ARV miss would wipe out the profit. That is the value of a full budget: it shows when the right move is to negotiate the price down before you sign. Our guide to the 70% rule shows how to work backward to that price.
Common mistakes
- Budgeting the rehab without contingency. Surprises are normal. Plan as if you spend it.
- Counting holding costs only during the rehab. The house still costs money while it is listed and under contract.
- Leaving out the lender's caps. If the loan is cut by an ARV cap, the gap is cash you bring.
- Forgetting your own cash flow timing. Draws reimburse work after it is done, so you front each month. Track peak cash, the most you have in at one time, not just total cash.
- Skipping selling costs or using a 3% placeholder when the real number is closer to 6% or 7%.
Once the deal closes, track spending against this budget with fix and flip project management. To build the budget fast, run your numbers in the free flip calculator.
Questions
What should a fix and flip budget include?
Six categories: purchase, buyer closing costs, financing costs, the rehab with contingency, monthly holding costs for the whole timeline, and selling costs such as commissions, concessions and transfer tax.
How much contingency should I add to a flip budget?
A common planning range is 10% for cosmetic or light work, 15% for medium, 20% for heavy and 25% for a gut rehab, with about 5% more for very old homes or structural work.
How do I estimate holding costs for a flip?
Add monthly taxes, insurance, utilities, HOA and other costs, then multiply by the months from purchase through the sale closing. Add loan interest month by month based on the balance drawn.
What percent of the sale price goes to selling costs?
Often about 6% to 7% once you add commissions, seller concessions, transfer tax and settlement fees. It varies by market, state and how you list.
For education only. Not legal, tax, lending or investment advice. Loan programs and guidelines change and vary by lender; confirm current terms with your lender.