Open any investment listing in HipPocket RE and one number sits next to the asking price: **ARV — After Repair Value.** It’s the answer to a simple question: *what will this property be worth once the work is done?*
Simple question, expensive mistakes. Here’s how experienced investors read it.
## Start with the spread, not the number
An ARV of $342,000 means nothing by itself. What matters is the spread: asking price + rehab budget versus ARV.
Take a listing at $248,000 asking with a $38,500 rehab budget and a $342,000 ARV. Your all-in is roughly $286,500 before holding and transaction costs — a spread of about $55,000. Whether that’s a deal depends on your financing, your timeline and your exit, but now you’re reasoning about *margin*, not price.
## Ask where the ARV comes from
A credible ARV rests on comparable sales — recently sold properties of similar size, condition and location. When you’re evaluating a listing:
– **Recency beats proximity.** A comp from last month two streets over usually tells you more than one from last year next door.
– **Match the renovated condition.** The comps should look like the property *after* your rehab, not before.
– **Watch the square footage math.** ARV inflated by comps that are 20% larger is the oldest trick in the book.
On HipPocket RE, listings carry the deal data up front — ARV, rehab budget, scope of work, occupancy — so you can run this sanity check before you ever pick up the phone.
## Read the rehab budget as a range
Whatever the scope of work says, seasoned investors mentally add a contingency — 10–20% depending on property age and how invasive the work is. If the deal only pencils when the rehab lands exactly on budget, it’s not a deal; it’s a bet.
## Then look past the numbers
Two properties with identical spreads are not identical deals. Occupancy status changes your timeline. Financing options change your carrying cost. Lead source and the acquisition agent tell you how fresh and how competitive the opportunity is. All of it is on the listing card for a reason.
## The two-minute ARV check
1. Compute all-in: asking + rehab (+ contingency).
2. Compare to ARV — is the spread worth your time?
3. Ask the listing agent what the ARV is based on. A good agent answers in comps, not adjectives.
4. Check occupancy and financing before you fall in love.
Do this on every listing and you’ll pass on more deals — which is exactly what reading ARV like a pro looks like.
*Browse current listings in the HipPocket RE marketplace — filter by city, price and type, in list or map view.*