Calculating Breakeven Point - Anyone good with excel/math pls help!

[Ryan Butler]

Hey Everyone,

Working on my first house hack and I'm using a spreadsheet someone on the forums was kind enough to give me to project income & expenses. It's been a massive help but the one thing I can't figure out is how to find my breakeven point so that I'm not negative cash flowing right away. Basically what I'm looking for is a formula that tells me what purchase price would get me to net positive based on my other inputs.

I have the monthly amount that I'm losing, so what I believe I need to do is lower the monthly mortgage payment by that amount and then back that out to the purchase price that would get me there. My math skills aren't what they used to be and I might be trying to do wayyy too much here but it seems like it should be more simple.

Here's an example

Mortgage Pmt: 5,435

Monthly Loss: 1,922

Breakeven Mortgage Pmt: 3,512

Mortgage Pmt Formula (In Excel): -PMT(Int Rate/12, Mortgage term * 12, Loan amt)

If anyone is a true excel/math whiz and can give me some help here I would really appreciate it!!!

Not sure how to attach a spreadsheet to this but if someone is willing to help I'd be more than happy to send it over

[Ben Einspahr]

@Ryan Butler. I understand your frustration. I remember when I first started out, trying to analyze properties seemed to get me nowhere and even more frustrated. A couple things:

-when you are analyzing, are you looking at numbers while living there or after moving out? After moving out are the key numbers you want to be looking at.

-their is much more to the investment than cash flow (appreciation, debt pay down, depreciation). The spreadsheet you are using must include that that into consideration too. Yes, cash flow is very important but it is the tip of the ice berg when it comes to house hacking while using a 5% down payment.

-if you are looking to decrease your mortgage payment, there are other options other then higher downpayment. Consider buying down the interest rate or prepaying PMI.

-Explore other options after moving out to increase rental income. STR ( if local rules and regs allow), Furnished MTR, or even rent by the room if you have 4+ bed home. Rent by the room is a very attractive investment strategy her in Denver to increase rental income in single family homes.

I know this did not directly answer your questions as i went on a bit of a tangent, but i hope you found value in it. 

I can send you spreadsheet I use when analyzing.