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Short-term or long-term? See what your property would earn.

Three quick steps. Paste a listing or just enter the price, and we’ll show which way pays more, and why.

The property

Purchase price$

How you’re buying

Down payment25% · $112,500Interest rate7%

$2,245 a month over 30 years.

What it could earn

Long-term rent$3,000 / monthShort-term nightly rate$245 / nightNights booked62% · 226 nights a year

Not sure? Our free property report estimates both for your address.

Costs and taxes HOA $650/mo · tax $8,100/yr

HOA a monthProperty tax a yearInsurance a yearUpkeep, % a year

Property tax estimated at 1.8% of the price until you enter it.

Include tax benefitsDepreciation and deductions at a 24% tax rate; short-term losses offset other income if you qualify.

The answer

Both need topping up at first, but short-term rental costs you about $3,746 a year less.

Year 1, after every cost and the mortgage.

Short-term · better

−$1,178/mo

Long-term

−$1,490/mo

Short-term rental

Airbnb, Vrbo, Booking.com · managed by Nomabase

Better

−$1,178 /month

You top this up in year 1 · −$14,134 a year

Pays for itself: Year 8
Profit if sold, yr 10: $30k
Cash-on-cash: -11.2%

Where the money goes, year 1

Income$55,444
Platform fees + management−$16,633
Utilities & supplies−$3,600
HOA, tax, insurance, upkeep−$22,400
Mortgage−$26,945
Left over−$14,134

Why

Earns $55,444 a year: $245 a night, booked 62% of the year.
Platform fees and Nomabase’s management take 30%, and utilities and supplies about $300 a month.
Needs 85% occupancy to cover all its costs in year 1; below that you top up $1,178 a month while the property gains value.
More income, but it needs active management and a building that allows short-term rentals.

Long-term rental

One tenant, a yearly lease

−$1,490 /month

You top this up in year 1 · −$17,881 a year

Pays for itself: Year 12
Profit if sold, yr 10: −$13k
Cash-on-cash: -14.2%

Where the money goes, year 1

Income$36,000
Vacancy + manager−$4,536
HOA, tax, insurance, upkeep−$22,400
Mortgage−$26,945
Left over−$17,881

Why

Rents for $3,000 a month: $36,000 a year, with 5% allowed for time between tenants.
A manager takes 8%, and the tenant usually pays the utilities.
Needs $4,705 a month in rent to cover all its costs; at $3,000 you top up $1,490 a month.
Steadier and simpler: one tenant, one lease, little day-to-day work.

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If you sold, year by year

What you’d walk away with after selling costs, the loan and all the cash you put in. Above $0, it has paid for itself.

Short-termLong-term

Circles mark the year each one pays for itself: short-term year 8, long-term year 12.

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A free report with short-term income from homes nearby and the long-term rent.

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The detailed calculator opens with your figures: the year-by-year table, NPV, IRR and every assumption.

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Estimates from the figures above, not financial, tax or legal advice. Short-term management is Nomabase’s 15%; platform fees 15%; long-term vacancy 5% and a manager’s 8%. Values and rents grow 3% a year. Short-term rental must be allowed by your building and city.

Short-term is better by $3,746/yrShort −$1,178/mo · Long −$1,490/moSee why