Six inputs, four outputs, and the two mistakes that make a projection look better than it actually is. This is the calculator behind braxpanama.com/str.html, explained field by field.
Our STR yield calculator is meant to be played with, not just glanced at once. But a slider only means something if you know what it's changing — so here's exactly what each input does, what the four output numbers mean, and where people most often fool themselves.
Nothing in the calculator is a black box. Here's precisely how each number is derived:
Plug in the defaults — $250,000 price, $120 ADR, 65% occupancy, 25% fees, $3,600 HOA, 30% down — and gross revenue comes out to roughly $28,470, net income to roughly $17,753, net yield to about 7.1%, and cash-on-cash return to about 23.7% (because only 30% of the price is actual cash outlay).
Gross dressed up as net. A listing that quotes "10% yield" without saying gross or net is, more often than not, gross — meaning management fees, cleaning, utilities and HOA haven't been subtracted yet. Run the same ADR and occupancy through our calculator with fees and HOA included, and the honest net number is usually meaningfully lower. Always ask.
Peak-season occupancy presented as the annual average. A building can genuinely hit 85% occupancy in high season and still average 55% for the year once shoulder and low season are counted. If someone quotes you a single occupancy number, ask whether it's a full 12-month average or a best-month snapshot.
"The calculator won't lie to you — but the numbers you type into it can. Ask for the operator's real ADR and occupancy before trusting any default."
It models operating yield only. It does not include Panama income tax on rental income (a separate, real line item — Panama-source rental income is taxed regardless of the owner's residency), financing interest if you take a mortgage, or appreciation. Treat the output as operating performance, not total return.
Net yield divides net annual income by the full purchase price — it measures how the asset performs regardless of financing. Cash-on-cash return divides net annual income by only your down payment — it measures how your actual cash outlay performs. If you pay in full, they're similar; the more leverage you use, the more cash-on-cash return diverges from (and usually exceeds) net yield.
Almost always because one number is gross and the other is net, or because the occupancy and fee assumptions are different. A gross yield with no management fee, cleaning cost or HOA subtracted will always look higher than a properly modeled net yield — ask which one you're looking at before comparing two projects.
The calculator's defaults ($120 ADR, 65% occupancy) are conservative, general-market starting points, not a specific project's verified performance. For an actual investment decision, request the operator's fact sheet for the specific building and use their real historical or projected numbers instead of the defaults.
No — it models operating yield only (gross revenue minus platform/management fees and HOA). Panama income tax on Panama-source rental income is a separate line item that applies on top of the net income shown, and should be confirmed with a Panamanian accountant before finalizing any projection.