Equity Multiple

Most commonly expressed as a number followed by an "x" (e.g. 2.3x), Equity Multiple is defined as the total pre-tax levered cash flow that a project produces (including disposition) divided by the total equity invested in that project, i.e. the sum of all positive monthly net levered cash flow divided by the sum of all negative monthly net levered cash flow.

For example, if a property is bought for $100, it produces cash of $10 per year for five years, and then is sold for $150 - the total cash "produced" is $200 (i.e. $10 x 5 + $150). $200 divided by the $100 "cost" of the investment (in this illustration there's no leverage, so the equity is also $100) results in a 2.0x equity multiple.

Within CashFlow, on the Return Summary report, CashFlow calculates a "running" equity multiple.