Investment Property Weekly Cost Calculator
The real weekly cost of an investment property is the out-of-pocket amount after tax: rent minus interest and expenses, then reduced by the refund the rental loss and depreciation give you at your marginal rate. See both your before-tax and after-tax weekly cost below.
Your property
Income & loan
Sets your marginal rate, which decides the size of the tax refund
Annual expenses
Optional
A paper deduction that lifts your refund without costing cash. Often $3,000 - $10,000 for a newer property. Set to 0 if you have no schedule.
Your real weekly cost
Real cost after tax
$185/ week
out of your pocket after the tax refund - $9,608 / year
Before tax (raw holding cost)
$326/ week
out of pocket before any tax benefit - $16,953 / year
Marginal rate used: 30% (32% with Medicare Levy), ATO FY 2025-26.
Heads-up: the depreciation included here lowers your weekly cost now, but claimed Div 43 capital works deductions reduce your CGT cost base when you sell (ATO ITAA 1997 s.110-45). Plan accordingly.
Your real weekly cost shifts every time rent, rates, or your rate changes. Vestly keeps it live across every property you own.
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What does an investment property really cost per week?
There are two numbers, and they are very different. The before-tax weekly cost is your raw holding cost: weekly rent minus loan interest minus every cash expense (council and water rates, insurance, strata, property management, repairs). For most Australian investors this lands somewhere between $150 and $300 a week out of pocket.
The after-tax weekly cost is the number that actually matters. When your expenses and interest exceed your rent, you make a rental loss. Under current ATO rules that loss is deductible against your salary, so the tax office effectively refunds part of it - your loss multiplied by your marginal tax rate. Add depreciation (a deduction that costs you no cash) and the refund grows further. The after-tax cost is what is genuinely leaving your pocket each week once that refund is counted.
Worked example
Take a $650,000 unit renting at $520/week ($27,040/yr), bought with an 80% loan of $520,000 at 6.25%. Interest is about $32,500 a year, and rates, water, insurance, strata, management and repairs add roughly $11,400. That is a before-tax cost of $326/wk. For an investor on $95,000 (a 30% marginal rate), the rental loss plus $6,000 of depreciation returns about $141/week in tax, bringing the real after-tax cost down to $185/wk.
The same property costs different amounts at different incomes
Because the refund is your loss times your marginal rate, the higher your income, the lower your real weekly cost. Here is the same $650k unit ($326/wk before tax) across four income levels, using ATO FY 2025-26 rates.
| Taxable income | Marginal rate | Weekly tax refund | Real cost / week (after tax) |
|---|---|---|---|
| $60,000 | 30% | $131/wk | $195/wk |
| $90,000 | 30% | $141/wk | $185/wk |
| $120,000 | 30% | $141/wk | $185/wk |
| $180,000 | 37% | $172/wk | $154/wk |
Assumes $520/wk rent, $520,000 loan at 6.25%, ~$11,400 annual cash expenses and $6,000 depreciation. Refund uses ATO FY 2025-26 brackets including Medicare Levy and LITO. Your figure will differ - run yours in the calculator above.
What goes into the weekly cost?
The cash costs that make up your before-tax weekly holding cost:
- Loan interest (the deductible part of your repayment)
- Council rates and water rates
- Building and landlord insurance
- Strata / body corporate fees (units and townhouses)
- Property management fees (usually 6-9% of rent)
- Repairs and maintenance
Depreciation is added on top as a deduction only - it lowers your tax but never your cash costs, so it cuts the after-tax figure without touching the before-tax one. Source: ATO - Rental expenses you can claim →
Common questions
How much does an investment property cost per week?
It depends on rent, your loan, expenses and your tax rate, but most Australian investment properties cost between $100 and $300 per week out of pocket. The before-tax figure is rent minus interest and expenses; the real cost is lower once the negative-gearing loss and depreciation give you a tax refund at your marginal rate.
What is the real after-tax weekly cost of an investment property?
The real cost is the before-tax shortfall reduced by the tax refund you get from the rental loss and depreciation. If a property runs $200 a week negative before tax and the loss plus depreciation returns roughly $70 a week at a 37% marginal rate, the real after-tax cost is about $130 a week out of pocket.
Does negative gearing reduce my weekly cost?
Yes, but it does not make it free. Negative gearing lets you deduct the rental loss against your salary, so you get part of the shortfall back as a tax refund (your loss multiplied by your marginal rate). It softens the weekly cost; it does not erase it. A higher income means a bigger refund and a smaller real cost.
What expenses can I include in the weekly cost?
Include every cash cost of holding the property: loan interest, council rates, water rates, building and landlord insurance, strata or body corporate fees, property management fees, and repairs and maintenance. Principal repayments are real cash but are not tax-deductible, so they raise your cost without adding to the refund.
Is depreciation included in the weekly cost?
Depreciation does not change your before-tax weekly cost because no cash leaves your account for it. It does lower your after-tax cost: claiming Division 43 building and Division 40 plant deductions increases your rental loss, which increases the tax refund and reduces the real out-of-pocket figure.
Why does my weekly cost change with my income?
Your income sets your marginal tax rate, and the refund from a rental loss equals the loss times that rate. The same property costs a 45% earner less per week than a 30% earner, because the higher earner gets more of the loss back. That is why the after-tax weekly cost only makes sense once you enter your taxable income.
Do principal repayments count in the weekly cost?
Principal repayments are real money leaving your account, so they affect your cash position, but they are not tax-deductible (only the interest is). This calculator uses interest, which is the deductible portion that drives both the holding cost and the tax refund. If you want the full cash picture including principal, use the property cashflow calculator.
Is the weekly cost the same as cashflow?
They are close but not identical. Cashflow uses your actual loan repayment (principal and interest) and a vacancy allowance. This calculator focuses on the deductible holding cost and the tax outcome, so it isolates the before-tax versus after-tax decision number. Use both tools together for the full picture.
Last updated June 2026, based on ATO FY 2025-26 rules. Figures use the current ATO brackets (Stage 3 applied) including Medicare Levy and the Low Income Tax Offset.
Related calculators
- Negative gearing calculator - the tax saving that drops your weekly cost
- Property cashflow calculator - full cash position including principal and vacancy
- Rental yield calculator - gross and net yield on the same property
- Depreciation calculator - estimate the Div 40 + Div 43 deduction you can claim
Know your real weekly cost on every property, all year
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