You're better sending a letter on a napkin than not sending anything at all!

If you don't know the cap rate, can you do a back of the napkin calculation by adding total rent, back out 10% for vacancy, then subtract 50% for expenses and take the net number and multiply by 10 to get a benchmark on price to offer?

Then a HELOC can be the down payment, etc.401k loans count as secured borrowed funds.Believe it or not, Fannie Mae actually gives "art" as an example of something you can borrow against right there in their guidelines, but I've not had the you-know-what to test that by having someone draw a smiley face on napkin and borrow $100k against it from a private party.

I'm a realtor / investor who actually owns several smaller apartment buildings / units and have always relied on a simple napkin analysis of: How much cash flow I wanted to earn after downpayment.

Sent a couple emails to the real estate agent only received one in return and that only included a simple proforma scribbled on a napkin.

The 10% rules are good back-of-the napkin numbers if you don't have real data, but any TK provider worth your time will have actual numbers for you to look at based on their portfolio performance.

I'm not looking to go into deep analysis, just "back of the napkin" stuff.

Pete, I have seen homes under $100k that rent for more than $1000 a month, and pass the napkin analysis.Having been through a majority of the Bigger Pockets Podcasts, I am feeling empowered to make my purchase this year in the greater St.

Sanitary facilities and a safe method of sewage disposal.

This calculation also assumes we turn around and sell it tomorrow as we aren't realizing any increase in equity (I realize you are doing a "back of the napkin" analysis, but wanted to clarify in case @Bryant Grimes is confused).