Last week, you learned the critical theory—the hidden expenses and “Four Horsemen” that can kill a rental deal. Today, we turn theory into action for analyzing deals. Manually building a spreadsheet for every single property is the bottleneck that keeps most investors stuck. To truly scale, you need to be fast, accurate, and professional.
In this episode of the 5-Minute PRIME Podcast, host Martin Maxwell gives you a full, tactical walkthrough of the REI Prime Cash Flow Calculator—the exact tool that pros use to move from the ‘Research’ phase to the ‘Expand’ phase. Learn how to analyze a deal from a Zillow link in 30 seconds, not 30 minutes.
Tune in to learn:
- How to use the AI-powered “Extract Data” feature to instantly pull info from Zillow or Redfin for analyzing deals.
- A step-by-step walkthrough of the calculator’s inputs, from “Initial Investment” to the “Four Horsemen.” for analyzing deals efficiently.
- How to read the real investor metrics: Net Cash Flow, Cap Rate, and the all-important Cash-on-Cash Return while analyzing deals like a pro.
- The “Total ROI” secret: how to see the three ways a property builds wealth (Cash Flow, Principal Paydown, and Appreciation) in your process of analyzing deals.
- How to get started on app.reiprime.com/calculator today to simplify analyzing deals.
Are you ready to stop wasting time in spreadsheets and start scaling your portfolio? Subscribe now for the tactical guide to analyzing deals in seconds.
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Show Notes: Analyzing Deals
Key Takeaways
- Manual Analysis is the Bottleneck: The biggest obstacle to scaling a real estate portfolio isn’t money, it’s the time spent manually analyzing deals.
- Automate for Speed & Scale: Use tools like the REI Prime Calculator to go from analyzing two deals an hour to twenty by automatically extracting data from property listings.
- Trust, but Verify: AI provides a starting point, but you, the investor, must verify and adjust key inputs like loan terms, interest rates, and realistic rental income.
- Conquer the “Four Horsemen”: The calculator forces you to account for Vacancy, Property Management, Repairs, and CapEx. Pro tip: combine Repairs and CapEx into one “Maintenance” line item and set it conservatively (10-15%).
- Focus on Key Investor Metrics: The ultimate goal is to see the Net Monthly Cash Flow and Cash-on-Cash (CoC) Return to determine if a deal is truly profitable.
- See the Full Wealth Picture: Understand your total return by looking beyond cash flow to include principal paydown and potential appreciation.
Action Step:
- Go to app.reiprime.com/calculator and sign up.
- Find a property listing on Zillow, Redfin, or Realtor.com.
- Paste the URL into the calculator’s “Extract from Property Listing” feature.
- Adjust the assumptions for the “Four Horsemen” to be conservative (e.g., Vacancy at 8%, Management at 10%, Maintenance at 12%+).
- Evaluate the deal based on its Net Monthly Cash Flow and Cash-on-Cash Return.
Mentioned in This Episode
Episodes to Revisit:
- Episode 99: The Appreciation Myth: Why Cash Flow Wins Every Time
Concepts
- The Four Horsemen of Expenses: Vacancy, Property Management, Repairs, and CapEx
- PRIME Framework: Research → Invest → Manage → Expand
Challenge for Today:
- Run the “Amateur” Analysis: Paste the URL into the calculator and look at the Cash Flow using only the default assumptions. Note this number.
- Run the “Professional” Analysis: On that same property, now adjust the “Four Horsemen” to Martin’s conservative standards (Vacancy: 8%, Property Management: 10%, Maintenance: 12%).
- Compare the Results: Look at the drastic difference between the two Net Monthly Cash Flow numbers. This will prove to you why you can never skip accounting for the hidden expenses.
