How the calculators work

How the return is calculated

• Net operating income (NOI) = gross annual rent minus operating expenses: property tax, insurance, management, maintenance, vacancy, and any HOA.
• Cap rate = NOI ÷ purchase price.
• Cash-on-cash = annual cash flow ÷ the cash you actually put in (set by the cash-invested share).

Where the numbers come from

• Operating-cost assumptions are seeded per market from Dara's internal underwriting reference (property tax %, insurance, management %, maintenance %, vacancy %).
• You set price, expected rent, and cash share; every result recomputes live from those.

What it isn't

• An estimate, not a guarantee. Costs are illustrative and confirmed per property at qualification.
• It models a cash / cash-share basis: it doesn't include loan payments, appreciation, or income taxes.

How the ratio works

• DSCR = expected monthly rent ÷ monthly housing expense (principal, interest, taxes, and insurance).
• A ratio at or above ~1.0 means the rent covers the financing; lenders generally look for more cushion, and stronger terms come with 30%+ down.

Assumptions

• The monthly payment is shown as an illustrative range at a mid-market rate band, never a specific rate quote, because foreign-national pricing is set at underwriting.
• Taxes and insurance are seeded per market; you set price, rent, and down payment.

What it isn't

• Not a rate quote, a pre-approval, or a credit decision.
• Qualification is confirmed per property and per borrower. This only shows where a property lands today.

What's added up

• Your down payment (if financed) or the full price (if cash), plus closing costs, LLC formation, and lender reserves when financed.
• Plus the line most calculators leave out: the cost of moving the money across the border.

The FX line

• The transfer line compares a typical bank wire's exchange-rate spread against Dara's rate on the same amount, the hidden cost in most cross-border purchases.

Assumptions & limits

• Closing figures and FX are illustrative, not live quotes, and are confirmed before you send funds.
• It's the cash to acquire. It doesn't include ongoing operating costs (see the Rental ROI tool for those).

How the comparison works

• One side holds your amount as home-currency cash, carried forward at that currency's historical annualized depreciation against the dollar.
• The other side moves the same amount into a US rental, grown at an illustrative net rental yield plus long-run appreciation, both shown in dollars.

Data & sources

• Depreciation is derived from published annual-average exchange rates, 2019-2025 (the source and dates are shown on the tool). Past performance is not a prediction.
• The US figure uses an illustrative net yield plus ~3% appreciation, before your own costs.

What it isn't

• A forecast or investment advice. It projects historical trends, which may not repeat.
• Your real result depends on the specific property, rates, and costs at the time.

How rewards are projected

• Each month we add your contribution, then apply a monthly share of your reward rate to the balance.
• The base reward rate is an illustrative reserve pass-through; your selected boosts are added on top, and the total is capped.
• Rewards are shown separately from what you put in, so you always see contributions vs. rewards earned.

The boost ladder and the cap

• Illustrative boosts: auto-save +0.5%, family two-way +1.0%, active referrals +1.0% each up to +2.0%, a term pocket +1.5% or +2.5%, and property build +1.0%.
• The combined reward rate is capped at 8%, and the boosted rate applies to your first $25,000. Any balance above that earns the base rate.
• These figures are illustrative placeholders and will be confirmed before launch.

What it isn't

• Not interest, a savings-account rate, or a guaranteed return. Dara pays usage-based rewards, and figures are illustrative, not a quote.
• It doesn't account for taxes or any fees, and your real rewards depend on the rates and boosts in effect at the time.