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Pro Forma Template for Real Estate

Project income, expenses, and investment returns with a professional-grade model. Built for multifamily, self-storage, and commercial acquisitions.

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.xlsx format
10-year hold period
IRR + equity multiple
proforma-template.xlsx
Year 1 Pro Forma Annual
Revenue
Gross Potential Rent $1,440,000
Other Income $48,000
Less: Vacancy (5%) ($74,400)
Effective Gross Income $1,413,600
Operating Expenses
Property Taxes $180,000
Insurance $36,000
Management (4%) $56,544
Repairs & Maintenance $72,000
Total OpEx ($424,544)
Net Operating Income $989,056
Less: Debt Service ($648,000)
Cash Flow (Year 1) $341,056
Cash-on-Cash
8.5%
IRR
16.2%
Equity Mult.
2.1x
10-year model

A real estate pro forma is a financial projection that estimates a property's income, expenses, and investment returns over a hold period. It models gross potential income, vacancy, operating expenses, net operating income (NOI), debt service, and cash flows to calculate returns like IRR, cash-on-cash, and equity multiple.

Pro forma analysis is the foundation of real estate underwriting. Whether you're evaluating a 50-unit multifamily, a self-storage facility, or a retail strip center, the pro forma tells you if the deal makes financial sense. It answers the critical question: What returns can I expect, and at what risk?

Template Contents

Everything you need to underwrite deals

A complete pro forma structure used by institutional investors.

Income Projections

Gross potential rent, other income, vacancy & credit loss, and effective gross income with annual growth assumptions.

Operating Expenses

Property taxes, insurance, management fees, repairs & maintenance, utilities, and administrative costs by line item.

Debt Modeling

Loan amount, interest rate, amortization, and annual debt service. Supports IO periods and refinance scenarios.

Cash Flow Analysis

Annual cash flow before tax for each year of the hold period, with running cumulative distributions.

Return Metrics

Auto-calculated IRR, equity multiple, cash-on-cash return, and cap rate at entry and exit.

Exit Analysis

Sale proceeds, disposition costs, loan payoff, and net equity returned at your chosen exit year.

Quick Start

How to use this pro forma

Five steps to model any commercial real estate acquisition.

01

Enter acquisition assumptions

Input purchase price, closing costs, and loan terms (LTV, rate, amortization). The template calculates your equity requirement automatically.

02

Input year-1 income

Enter gross potential rent from the rent roll, other income, and stabilized vacancy. Use the T12 as your baseline for expenses.

03

Apply growth assumptions

Set annual rent growth, expense inflation, and vacancy trends. The model projects all 10 years automatically based on your inputs.

04

Set exit assumptions

Choose your exit cap rate and hold period. The template calculates sale price, disposition costs, and net proceeds.

05

Review returns

Check the summary tab for IRR, equity multiple, and cash-on-cash return. Stress-test by adjusting exit cap rate or rent growth.

Key Metrics

Understanding pro forma returns

IRR

Internal Rate of Return

The annualized return that makes NPV of all cash flows equal to zero. Accounts for timing of distributions. Target: 15-20%+ for value-add deals.

2.0x

Equity Multiple

Total distributions divided by total equity invested. A 2.0x multiple means you double your money. Doesn't account for timing.

8%

Cash-on-Cash

Annual cash flow divided by total equity invested. Measures year-by-year cash yield. Target: 6-10% in year one, growing over time.

5.5%

Cap Rate

NOI divided by property value. Unlevered return on the asset. Entry cap rate vs. exit cap rate spread drives a lot of the return.

FAQ

Common questions

What's the difference between pro forma and actuals?

A pro forma is a projection of future performance based on assumptions you control. Actuals (like the T12) show historical performance. You use actuals as a baseline to build a realistic pro forma. The gap between T12 actuals and your pro forma represents the value you plan to create through rent increases, expense reductions, or operational improvements.

What hold period should I use?

Most CRE pro formas use a 5, 7, or 10-year hold period. This template defaults to 10 years, but you can adjust the exit year. Shorter holds are more sensitive to exit cap rate assumptions.

How do I stress-test the deal?

Adjust your exit cap rate up by 25-50 bps, reduce rent growth by 1%, and increase vacancy by 2-3%. If the deal still meets your return thresholds, it has a margin of safety.

What asset types does this work for?

The template works for any income-producing property: multifamily, self-storage, retail, office, industrial, and mixed-use. Just adjust the income and expense line items for your asset type.

Can I automate the data entry?

Yes. Primer extracts rent roll and T12 data from any document and maps it directly to your pro forma. No manual typing required.

Automate it

Skip the manual data entry

Primer extracts rent roll and T12 data from any document format and maps it directly to your pro forma model. Stop copying numbers from PDFs.

  • Works with any rent roll or T12 format
  • Maps to YOUR Excel templates
  • 98%+ accuracy with source citations
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