Reserve Burn Rate Calculator

Reserve burn measures capex runway. This calculator reveals months of coverage.

Current reserve

YTD capex deployed

Months elapsed

Contracted remaining

Burn months remaining

1 yr

Monthly burn

$16,000

Effective reserve

$193,000

How the math works

Burn = YTD capex ÷ months elapsed. Effective reserve = balance − contracted. Months remaining = effective ÷ burn.

Recalculate burn against the trailing 12 months rather than YTD. Early-year projects skew YTD metrics high (work orders pile up in Q1-Q2); trailing-12 captures real deployment pace across seasonality.

How to Use

Enter current reserve balance.
Enter YTD capex deployed.
Enter months elapsed.
Enter contracted remaining capex.
Read burn months remaining.

Frequently Asked Questions

Interpretation?

6+ months = healthy. 3-6 months = watch. <3 months = urgent capital call or contribution increase. Trailing 12 months best view (smooths seasonality); YTD can be noisy in Q1.

Contracted vs discretionary?

Contracted capex (signed with GC) must be paid. Discretionary (planned but uncontracted) can be deferred. Separate the two to know actual runway vs wishlist runway — very different numbers.

Recovery mechanism?

Annual reserve contribution increase (cleanest). Owner capital call (HOA/MF syndication). Capex loan (bridges to refi). Sell off underperformer (portfolio-level). Each has cost; most expensive path is emergency funding after reserves hit zero.

How does this interact with the rest of the capital stack?

Each tier of the stack affects the next. Senior debt constrains LTC and DSCR. Mezz and pref consume equity spread. Interest rate hedges protect DSCR but cost premium. Always model the full stack holistically — optimizing one tier alone often degrades another. Institutional underwriters run three or four scenarios across the stack before committing capital.