Wholesale vs Fix-and-Flip Profit Calculator
Wholesalers assign contracts for a fee without taking title. Flippers buy, renovate, and resell. The same property can yield very different returns. Compare both strategies side-by-side with real assumptions.
| After-Repair Value (ARV) | — |
| Maximum Allowable Offer | — |
| Rehab Cost | — |
| Wholesale Assignment Fee | — |
| Flip Hold + Sell Costs | — |
| Wholesale Net Profit | — |
| Flip Net Profit | — |
| Wholesale Capital Needed | — |
| Flip Capital Needed | — |
| Wholesale Annualized ROI | — |
| Flip Annualized ROI | — |
| Flip Hold Time | — |
How Wholesaling Works
Wholesalers contract a property at a deeply discounted price (typically 70% × ARV − rehab) and then assign the contract to an end-buyer (usually a rehabber) for a fee. The wholesaler never takes title — they only put down earnest money ($500-$5,000) and assign before closing.
Profit is the assignment fee ($5K-$15K typical, sometimes $30K+ on great deals). Capital deployed is just the earnest money. Time to close: 1-4 weeks. This makes wholesaling very capital-efficient on an annualized ROI basis but limits absolute dollars per deal.
How Fix-and-Flip Works
Flippers buy the property, complete renovations, and sell at retail. Profit = ARV − purchase price − rehab − holding costs − selling costs. Capital needed: full purchase (~$180K on a $300K ARV deal) plus rehab ($30K) plus 6 months of holding costs.
Hard money lenders fund 70-80% of purchase + 100% of rehab at 10-13% interest. Total cash needed: ~$50K-$100K depending on leverage. Time to flip: 3-9 months.
ROI vs Absolute Dollars
On the same deal, wholesale profit might be $8K vs flip profit $40K. But wholesaling deploys only $1K capital (assignment fee model), while flipping deploys $50K-$100K plus 6 months. Annualized ROI on capital favors wholesaling 2-5x.
Pick wholesale if: you have time and hustle but limited capital, you can find off-market deals consistently, you're risk-averse to renovation overruns. Pick flip if: you have capital + reliable contractors, you can absorb a project blowing past budget, you want larger absolute paydays.
Legal Considerations
Wholesaling is legal but heavily regulated in some states. Texas, Oklahoma, Florida, and Pennsylvania require licensing or specific assignment structures. Illinois and Indiana have new laws requiring real estate license for wholesale activity. Always check state law.
Best practice: clear assignment language in your contract, full disclosure to seller and buyer, and (where required) be a licensed agent. Some wholesalers use the 'double close' structure to avoid assignment disclosure issues — buy and immediately resell, never assigning.
Source: state real estate commission rules (varies by state)