Know your max offer before you talk numbers.
This is a real estate wholesaling calculator: it prices a house deal you put under contract and assign to a cash buyer — it is not a calculator for wholesale products, inventory, or per-unit pricing. Enter the ARV, repair estimate, and what the seller is asking. You get your Maximum Allowable Offer (MAO), the fee left in the deal at the asking price, and a straight verdict — deal, tight, or walk away.
The property & the ask
Use your best comp-based ARV — the whole math stands or falls on that number.
Repair estimate
Tap a rehab level to estimate from square footage, or type your contractor number directly.
Rough Louisiana ballparks for estimating only — paint & fixtures at the low end, roof/HVAC/systems in the middle, down-to-studs at the top. Always verify with a walk-through or contractor bid.
Your terms
The 70% rule is the starting point most cash buyers use. Experienced buyers in hot areas go higher; heavy rehabs go lower.
“Other costs” is optional cushion — closing help you offer the seller, or just a safety margin so a repair surprise doesn’t kill the deal.
These are your cash buyer’s costs after they buy from you — taxes, insurance, utilities, and financing while they hold the property (holding), plus agent commissions and closing costs when they resell (selling). They don’t change your MAO — the 70% rule already assumes them — but they come straight out of your buyer’s margin, so the results show the margin both before and after them. Leave at $0 if you don’t have estimates.
Offer at or below this number and the deal still works for you and your cash buyer.
What you’d actually make if the seller accepts their own ask.
MAO + your fee. The most an end buyer should pay all-in for the contract.
What’s left of the ARV after purchase, repairs, and the buyer’s holding & selling costs.
Asking is under your max — you have room.
Where the ARV goes
Asking price vs. your max offer
ARV breakdown — every dollar
| ARV × 70% (buyer’s target basis) | $199,500 |
| Less: repairs | −$42,000 |
| Less: your assignment fee | −$10,000 |
| Less: other costs / buffer | −$0 |
| = Maximum Allowable Offer | $147,500 |
| Buyer gross margin (ARV − buyer price − repairs) | $85,500 |
| Less: buyer holding costs | −$0 |
| Less: buyer selling costs | −$0 |
| = Buyer margin after holding & selling | $85,500 |
Why 70%?
A flipper buying at 70% of ARV minus repairs keeps roughly 30% of ARV to cover holding costs, financing, selling costs, surprises — and profit. No margin, no buyer. No buyer, no assignment.
Your fee comes out first
Notice the fee is subtracted before the MAO, not added on top. That’s what protects you: if the seller holds at your max offer, your fee is already in the deal — not squeezed out at closing.
When the math says no
If the asking price is above MAO, the honest moves are negotiate down, find a different buyer type (landlord math differs from flipper math), or walk. Forcing a bad deal burns your buyer list.
Frequently asked questions
Straight answers on the MAO math behind the calculator above.
What is a wholesale deal calculator?
A wholesale deal calculator prices a house deal you put under contract and assign to a cash buyer. It works out your Maximum Allowable Offer (MAO) — the most you can offer the seller and still leave room for your assignment fee and the buyer's profit.
How do you calculate the maximum allowable offer (MAO)?
MAO = (ARV × 70%) − repairs − assignment fee − other costs. In the default example: $285,000 × 70% = $199,500, minus $42,000 of repairs and a $10,000 assignment fee, gives an MAO of $147,500.
What is the 70 percent rule in wholesaling?
The 70 percent rule says a cash buyer generally pays no more than 70% of a home's after repair value, minus repair costs. The 70% leaves room for the buyer's profit and for holding and selling costs. This calculator lets you move the discount between 55% and 85%; it defaults to 70%.
What is a wholesale real estate assignment fee?
The fee you keep when you assign your purchase contract to a cash buyer. In the default example the assignment fee is $10,000, and because the seller is asking $125,000 — $22,500 under the $147,500 MAO — the fee left in the deal at the asking price is $32,500.