Extend, Refinance or Sell Calculator for Apartments

Short answer

When an apartment loan matures you can extend it, refinance it, or sell. This calculator projects all three over five years from your value, NOI, growth rate, current loan, extension terms, refinance rate, sale costs and exit cap rate, then shows the pre-tax cash each path puts in your pocket so you can see which one wins.

What this calculator answers

Your loan is coming due and you have three real choices. You can ask the lender for an extension, refinance into new permanent debt, or sell the building and take the equity. Each one costs something different, and the right answer depends on numbers you already have.

This tool puts the three paths next to each other over the same five years, using one set of assumptions, so the comparison is fair. It is built for owners of 5+ unit buildings who are 6 to 24 months from maturity and want to know which conversation to start first.

Extend, refinance or sell

Value today ($)NOI this year ($)NOI growth per year (%)Current loan balance ($)

Extend

Extension rate (%)Extension fee (% of balance)

Refinance

Refinance rate (%)Refinance min DSCR (x)Refinance max LTV (%)Refinance closing costs (%)

Sale and horizon

Sale costs (% of price)Exit cap rate (%)Years to compare

Sell now–

Extend–

Refinance–

Highest total–

Estimates only, not a loan quote.

How to use it

Every input is a number you can pull from your own files in a few minutes.

Property value. Your best estimate of what the building would appraise for today. A recent broker opinion of value or appraisal is better than a guess. If you have neither, divide your NOI by a cap rate you have seen on comparable sales in your submarket.
NOI. Net operating income for the last twelve months: collected rent and other income, minus operating expenses, before debt service and capital spending. Take it from your T-12, not your budget.
NOI growth. The annual rate you expect NOI to grow over the next five years. Use something you can defend from your own history. If rents have been flat, enter a low number.
Current balance and rate. The unpaid principal and note rate from your latest loan statement.
Extension rate and fee. What your lender has offered, or what you expect them to ask, for extending. Many extensions come with a higher rate and a fee as a percent of the balance. If you have no offer yet, run a range.
Refinance rate. The all-in rate you expect on new permanent debt. See current refinance rate inputs for the index the rate is built on, then add a spread.
Sale costs. Brokerage commission, transfer taxes, legal and closing costs, as a percent of price. Transfer taxes vary a lot by state and city, so check yours.
Exit cap rate. The cap rate a buyer would pay at the end of the five years. Using a cap rate a little higher than today's is the conservative habit most lenders and buyers follow.

Worked example

Say you own a building worth $10,000,000 that earns $650,000 of NOI, and you expect NOI to grow 2% a year. Your current loan has a $7,000,000 balance at 4.0%, and it is maturing. Your lender will extend at 7.5% with a 1% fee. A new permanent loan would price at 6.25%. If you sell, you expect costs of 3%, and you assume a buyer at a 6.5% cap rate when the five years are up.

	Sell now	Extend	Refinance
Cash at the start	$2,700,000	-$70,000	-$67,705
Cash flow after debt service, 5 years	–	$757,626	$782,626
Net sale proceeds in year 5	–	$3,709,584	$4,140,637
Total, pre-tax, undiscounted	$2,700,000	$4,397,210	$4,855,558

Read the table as three columns of the same building. The extension column shows the cost of keeping your current lender at a higher rate, which usually means the most interest paid and the least change to your capital structure. The refinance column shows what new debt does to cash flow, and whether the new loan pays off the old one with room to spare or needs fresh equity. The sale column shows the cash you would hold today, and what that cash gives up in future NOI growth and appreciation.

If the refinance column needs a paydown, that is your signal that the property does not size to the new loan. In that case the extension is buying time for NOI to grow into a larger loan, and the question becomes whether that growth is likely before the extension ends.

What this tool assumes

Pre-tax only. It ignores income taxes, depreciation recapture, capital gains and any 1031 exchange. A sale can look best pre-tax and worst after tax. Run the after-tax view with your CPA before you list.
One growth rate. NOI grows smoothly at the rate you enter. Real buildings have lumpy years: a tax reassessment, an insurance spike, a roof.
The refinance sizes. The tool uses your refinance rate but does not test whether a lender would size the loan you need at your NOI. Check that with the cash-out calculator or the DSCR sensitivity grid.
Extension terms hold. Lenders can attach conditions to an extension: a paydown, a cash sweep, new reserves, a rate floor. The tool models only the rate and fee.
No prepayment cost. It assumes you are at or past maturity. If you are refinancing early, run the break-even calculator first.
The exit cap is a guess. A small change in exit cap moves the sale path more than any other input. Test a higher number before trusting the answer.

What to do next

If refinancing wins and the loan sizes, start the refinance now. A permanent loan takes months from first quote to closing, and the third-party reports alone take weeks. The maturity planner works back from your date.

If the extension wins, ask your lender for the written terms early and read the conditions as closely as the rate. Our guide to apartment loan extensions covers what lenders usually ask for.

If selling wins, get a broker opinion of value and a tax estimate before deciding. The pre-tax number is only half of the answer.

If the result is close, that tells you the decision turns on factors the math cannot see: how long you want to hold, how much work the building needs, and whether you have a better place for the equity. Use the share link or the "get quotes on these numbers" button to send the scenario to a partner or to us at desk@janover.co.

Frequently asked questions

Is it better to extend or refinance a maturing apartment loan?

It depends on whether your building sizes to a new loan today. If it does, refinancing usually costs less than an extension because extensions often carry a higher rate and a fee. If NOI is too low to support a loan that pays off the current balance, an extension can buy time for NOI to grow. Run both paths on your own numbers, and get written extension terms before you compare.

Does this calculator include taxes on a sale?

No. The comparison is pre-tax. It does not include capital gains tax, depreciation recapture, state taxes, or the effect of a 1031 exchange. Those can change which path is best, especially for owners who have held a building a long time and have a low tax basis. Run the after-tax version with a tax advisor before you decide to sell.

What exit cap rate should I use?

Use a cap rate at or slightly above what comparable buildings in your submarket trade at today. Buyers and lenders usually assume a higher cap rate at exit than at purchase, because the building will be older and rates can rise. The exit cap rate moves the sale result more than any other input, so test a few values before trusting the outcome.

Why would a refinance need more equity?

A new lender sizes the loan to the lower of its loan-to-value limit and its debt service coverage limit at today's rate. If rates are higher than when you borrowed, the coverage limit can produce a loan smaller than your current balance. The difference has to come from your pocket at closing, from a second-position loan, or from waiting for NOI to grow.

How far ahead of maturity should I run this?

Run it 12 to 18 months before maturity, then again when you have real quotes. Early is better because a refinance needs time for an appraisal, a property condition report and an environmental report, and a sale needs time to market. If you wait until the last few months, the extension may be the only path still open.