ARV Calculator
Free after repair value estimator, built on real sold data
Estimate after repair value from comp price per square foot, then screen the deal with an adjustable 70 percent rule. Enter a ZIP to prefill real local sold data.
Deal Inputs
Enter a ZIP to auto-fill local sold prices, then add your square footage
Start here: enter a ZIP code
We fill in the median sold $/sqft for this ZIP from real closings, so you do not have to know it.
Subject property
The ZIP fills this with the local median. Adjust it if you have a closer comp for your finished product.
Deal screen
What you would actually pay. Left blank the margin is measured at the max offer, which by construction is just the 30 percent the rule holds back. Type a real purchase price and the margin becomes deal-specific.
How this ARV calculator works
After repair value is what your property should sell for once the renovation is done. The fastest honest estimate is the price per square foot method: take what renovated comparable homes near you actually sold for per square foot, then multiply by your subject property square footage. This calculator adds two things most ARV tools skip: real local sold data by ZIP code from closings Resideline tracked, and an adjustable purchase rule so the max offer matches how you actually buy.
The formulas
- ARV = Comp sold $/sqft times subject square footage
- Max Offer = ARV times your rule percentage minus rehab budget
- Margin at ARV = ARV minus your purchase price minus rehab budget, the cushion that pays your costs and profit. Leave the purchase price blank and it defaults to the max offer, in which case the margin is by construction exactly what the rule holds back (30 percent of ARV at a 70 percent rule). Type the price you would really pay and it becomes a per-deal number.
Where the ZIP prefill comes from
When you enter a ZIP code, the calculator prefills the median sold price per square foot from closed sales Resideline tracked in that ZIP over the last 6 months, and shows the median sold price plus the middle half of those sales. It is a sample of tracked closings, not a total market count, and a ZIP-wide median blends every condition and property type. Treat it as a starting anchor, then tighten the $/sqft using comps that match your finished product.
A quick screen, not an appraisal
The $/sqft method is a screening tool. Two houses with identical square footage can sell 100,000 dollars apart on lot, layout, school zone, and finish level. Before you write an offer, confirm the ARV with recently sold comps in similar post-rehab condition and adjust for the differences. That comp selection and adjustment work is exactly what a full Resideline property report automates.
How to pick ARV comps
The formula is trivial. The comps decide whether the answer is worth anything, and this is where most ARV estimates go wrong. Four filters, in the order they matter:
- Sold, not listed. An asking price is an opinion. Use closings.
- Recent. Six months is ideal, twelve is the outer limit. In a moving market a year-old sale is a different market.
- Close. A mile is a reasonable radius in a suburb. In a dense city, value changes street to street, so a few blocks is the honest limit.
- Similar, and similarly finished. Same property type, square footage within about 20 percent, same bed and bath count, and renovated to the standard you are planning. An unrenovated comp will pull your ARV down and cost you the deal.
If you cannot find three comps that pass all four, widen the radius before you widen the date range, and write down what you compromised. A full walkthrough is in how to comp a house.
A worked example
A 1,400 square foot house needs a full cosmetic renovation. Renovated homes of similar size within half a mile have closed at a median of 250 dollars per square foot over the last six months. The rehab budget is 60,000 dollars.
- ARV: 1,400 sqft x 250 dollars = 350,000 dollars
- 70 percent of ARV: 245,000 dollars
- Less the rehab budget: 245,000 minus 60,000 = 185,000 dollars maximum offer
The 105,000 dollars held back is not profit. It has to cover purchase and sale closing costs, the loan points and interest while you hold it, the agent commission on the way out, and whatever the inspection finds. Treat the maximum offer as a ceiling, not a target.
Where ARV estimates go wrong
- Comping against listings. Asking prices in a slow market are aspirational, and using them inflates every figure downstream.
- Ignoring finish level. Two identical floor plans can differ by 30 percent on finish alone. Match the standard you intend to deliver.
- Averaging instead of taking the median. One outlier sale moves an average a long way. The median is what this calculator uses.
- Forgetting the lot and the location. Price per square foot carries no information about a busy road, a flood zone or a steep lot.
- Treating the 70 percent rule as a law. It is a screen. In a low-priced market the fixed costs eat more than 30 percent, and in an expensive one you can often pay 75 percent.
Frequently asked questions
What is ARV in real estate?
ARV stands for after repair value. It is what a property should sell for once the renovation is complete, based on what similar updated homes nearby have actually sold for.
How is ARV calculated?
The standard shortcut is ARV equals the price per square foot of comparable sold homes multiplied by your subject property square footage. If renovated comps sell for 250 dollars a square foot and your house is 1,400 square feet, the ARV is 350,000 dollars.
How do you find ARV comps?
Take recent sold homes, not listings, as close to the subject as you can: same property type, similar square footage, similar bed and bath count, and sold within the last six to twelve months. Prefer homes renovated to the level you are planning, because an unrenovated comp drags the figure down. A mile is the usual outer limit in a suburb, and a few blocks in a dense city.
Is there a free ARV calculator by address?
This one works from a ZIP rather than a single address, and prefills the median sold price per square foot for that ZIP from closings Resideline tracks. An address-level figure needs the specific comparable sales for that property, which is what a Resideline report produces.
What is the difference between ARV and as-is value?
As-is value is what the property is worth in its current condition, before any work. ARV is what it should be worth after the renovation. The gap between the two, minus your rehab budget and carrying costs, is where a flip profit comes from.
Can I use a spreadsheet or app instead?
The arithmetic is simple enough for a spreadsheet: comp price per square foot times square footage, then 70 percent of that minus the rehab budget. What a spreadsheet cannot do is fetch the local price per square foot for you, which is the number that decides whether the answer is any good.
What is the 70 percent rule?
The 70 percent rule says your maximum offer is 70 percent of the ARV minus the rehab budget. The 30 percent you hold back has to cover closing costs, holding costs, selling costs and your profit.
Related calculators
- BRRRR Calculator: model the refinance after the rehab
- Rehab Cost Estimator: build the renovation budget
- Rental Property Calculator: full cash flow if you hold instead of flip
- Cash-on-Cash Calculator: isolate your return on cash
A ZIP-level median gets you in the neighborhood, real comps close the deal. Resideline analyzes any real US address with actual comparable sales, condition adjustments, and rehab pricing. Your first 3 reports are free.
Watch: determine your max offer
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