Calculator
Run the coverage ratio on a Colorado rental.
Rent, taxes, insurance, association dues, the loan amount and a rate you supply. The calculator returns the ratio and a plain-English read on what it means. It runs in your browser and stores nothing.
The calculator runs entirely in your browser. Nothing you type here is transmitted, stored, or used to contact you.
Debt service coverage ratio (rent ÷ housing payment)
- Principal & interestneeds a rate
- Taxes$0
- Insurance$0
- HOA$0
- Total housing payment—
- Rent minus payment—
- Gross annual rent—
Enter a rate to see the ratio. We deliberately do not pre-fill one: the rate on an investment loan depends on the property, leverage, credit, reserves and the lender, and a made-up default would flatter the math.
Estimates only, using figures you entered. This is not a loan offer, a rate quote, or an approval, and it ignores vacancy, management, maintenance, and reserve requirements that real underwriting will apply.
Why the rate field is blank
Because a pre-filled rate would flatter the math. The rate on an investment loan depends on the property type, the leverage, the credit profile, the reserves and the lender, and a number invented for a website field would tell you nothing true about your file. Type in whatever scenario you are testing — a quote you have received, or a figure you want to stress.
The same logic applies to the other inputs. The calculator is only as honest as what you put in it. A rent the market does not support, a tax bill taken from a listing rather than the county record, and an insurance estimate instead of a real quote will each produce a ratio that looks better than the property is.
What the calculation does not include
The ratio here is the lender’s ratio: rent divided by principal, interest, taxes, insurance and HOA dues. It deliberately excludes the costs that decide whether the property makes money — vacancy, property management, maintenance, capital reserves, owner-paid utilities and leasing costs.
Those expenses are real, and an investor who only looks at the lender’s ratio is underwriting a loan rather than a business. A practical habit is to run the number here, then subtract management and a vacancy allowance from the rent and look at what is left. If the property only works before those deductions, it does not work.
What it does not tell you
- Whether the property qualifies — credit and reserves are part of every file.
- Whether the rent you entered is supportable by an appraiser or a lease.
- Whether the property is insurable at the premium you assumed.
- Whether the unit count is legal, which changes what rent counts.
Every one of those is decidable before you write an offer, and each is covered in the guides and the market pages.
Reading the result
- Comfortable coverageAt or above 1.25
The rent covers the payment with a cushion for a vacancy month, a repair, or an insurance increase. Underwriting still turns on the appraisal, the lease and the reserves, but the math is not the obstacle. - Workable coverage1.15 to 1.24
A real margin, but a thin one. Plenty of files land here and get approved. A soft rent estimate or a higher insurance quote can move the number, so verify both before you rely on it. - Thin coverage1.00 to 1.14
Nearly all of the rent is committed to the payment. One vacancy month puts the property underwater for that period. Some programs will still look at a file like this when reserves and lease history are strong. - Negative coverageBelow 1.00
The rent does not cover the housing payment. You would be funding the property from other income, and the financing gets harder to place. More equity, a higher verified rent, or a lighter expense load are the fixes.
Where the inputs come from
- Rent: the executed lease, not a projection.
- Taxes: the county assessor record for the parcel, divided by twelve.
- Insurance: a bindable landlord quote for the address.
- HOA: the association’s current budget.
- Loan amount: what you intend to borrow, after any down payment.
Have the numbers? We will read them with you.
Send the address, the rent and the loan amount. We will tell you what the coverage looks like on a real program and what would need to change if it does not clear.