Short-Term Rental health calculator
Short-term rentals die on occupancy, cleaning, and channel fees — not on the headline ADR from a peak Saturday. This calculator is for hosts who can export nights booked and a year of payouts, and who need net after turnovers, not a screenshot of a calendar that looks full in July.
Who this is for
One- to several-unit hosts, not hotel asset managers. If you have a property manager, use their actual remittances, not the listing’s “potential.”
What to enter first
Revenue (host payout after platform fees if that is what hits your bank), nights booked, nights available, operating costs, and cleaning spend. Debt service and cash add coverage and runway when the property is financed.
Worked example: two-bedroom metro listing, self-managed
Original 12-month example.
- Nights available: 340 (blocked 25 for owner stays and maintenance)
- Nights booked: 228
- Host payout received: $64,900
- Cleaning paid to a team:
- Other opex (supplies, software, insurance increment, utilities, linens): $9,800
- Mortgage P&I: $21,600 / year
- Occupancy = 228 ÷ 340 = 67.1%. Inside a common 65–80% conversation band, but the blocked nights already removed the easy days.
- ADR ≈ 64,900 ÷ 228 = $284.65 on payout, not on guest-facing sticker.
- RevPAR ≈ 64,900 ÷ 340 =
- Cleaning as % of payout = 11,400 ÷ 64,900 = 17.6%. The band we watch is often nearer 15% or below. Short stays are taxing this listing.
- NOI before debt ≈ 64,900 − 11,400 − 9,800 = $43,700. DSCR vs. 21,600 debt service ≈ 2.02× — coverage is fine; operations still need a cleaning look.
A high ADR with expensive turns can lose to a slightly cheaper week with fewer cleanings. Occupancy and cleaning % should be read together, which is why both are first-class metrics here.
How to read the results
Occupancy is demand. ADR is price. RevPAR combines them. Cleaning % and cost per booked night tell you whether the operating model matches the stay length you actually sell. DSCR matters if there is a mortgage; runway matters if you live in a tourist market with a dead quarter.
Mistakes that make the math useless
- Using guest-facing revenue including taxes and platform fees you never received.
- Counting owner-blocked nights as available, then celebrating 90% occupancy.
- Annualizing July. Shoulder season is the test.
When to re-run the check
After a minimum-stay change, a new channel fee, a cleaning-price increase, or a quarter with heavy owner blocks. Compare Q1 and Q3 before you buy a second unit on last summer’s ADR.
Should payout be before or after the mortgage?
Revenue should be operating inflow. Mortgage is debt service, used for DSCR, not subtracted twice.