Guide
70% rule vs Max Buy for car flippers
The 70% rule is a blunt wholesale heuristic. Max Buy is target-ROI math for your actual resale, recon, and fees. Independent Marketplace flippers usually need Max Buy.
What the 70% rule usually means
A common shorthand: do not pay more than ~70% of after-repair value (ARV), sometimes with repair costs handled in variants of the rule. It is fast — and often wrong for private-party retail exits with light recon.
What Max Buy means
Max Buy = Expected Resale / (1 + Target ROI) − Repairs − Fees − Transport. It scales with your return target and real costs. See the full walkthrough in how to calculate Max Buy.
Side-by-side
- Speed: 70% wins for a 2-second filter; Max Buy wins for offers.
- Retail Marketplace exits: 70% often underbids clean light-recon cars; Max Buy fits ROI goals.
- Heavy recon / salvage: neither saves you from bad information — but Max Buy forces recon into the number.
- Fees & transport: easy to forget in 70%; explicit in Max Buy.
Practical workflow
- Optional: use a rough % rule to skip obvious garbage.
- Always compute Max Buy before you message a serious offer.
- Bucket with Buy / Negotiate / Caution / Pass.
FAQ
Is 70% wrong?
It is incomplete for many retail flips. Use it as a coarse filter if you want — not as your offer math.
What ROI should I plug into Max Buy?
Many independent flippers use 15–25% on total cash in. See the ROI guide.
Does ARV equal Expected Resale?
ARV is often used interchangeably with after-repair retail. Be consistent and conservative.
Do this next
Run the free calculator with your real numbers. When you want market comps and repair exposure instead of guesses, run a full FlipDrive IQ analysis.
Related guides
FlipDrive IQ is decision-support software, not a vehicle inspection, appraisal, or guarantee of resale value. Price ranges in this guide are illustrative — verify with KBB, Edmunds, Manheim MMR, and local comps before you buy.