Car Park Investment Calculator

Car park investment calculator measures cap rate for parking facility investments. 500k 50-space car park, 40/week per space, 75% occupancy, 20k expenses = 78k gross income, 58k NOI, 11.6% cap rate. Higher than residential property but operating-intensive sector with growing competition from EV/transit alternatives.

Example: 500,000 car park, 50 spaces, 40/week per space. Gross potential rent 104,000 annually. 75% occupancy = 78,000 effective gross. Operating expenses 20,000 (security, maintenance, payment systems, council). NOI 58,000. Cap rate 11.6%. Strong return reflects active management requirements.

Car park investment realities: (1) Higher cap rates (8-15%) reflect operating intensity and obsolescence risk. (2) Long-term decline risk (autonomous vehicles, ride-sharing, transit improvements). (3) Council restrictions (planning use class, residential parking schemes). (4) Operating costs (security, payment systems, payment processing fees). (5) Liability insurance significant. (6) Best locations: city centres, near stations/airports, hospital catchment areas. Access: NCP (now private), Q-Park, Saba Aparcamientos public listing comparable. Direct ownership: typically 200k+ minimum.

Run it with sensible defaults

Using property price of 500,000, total spaces of 50, weekly rate per space of 40, occupancy of 75%, the calculation works out to 11.60%. The defaults are meant as a starting point, not a recommendation.

The levers in this calculation

The inputs — Property Price, Total Spaces, Weekly Rate per Space, Occupancy %, and Annual Operating Expenses — do not pull with equal force. The rate and the time horizon usually dominate — compounding means a small change in either reshapes the final figure more than a similar shift in contribution size. Test this by doubling one input at a time.

How the math works

Annual income = spaces × weekly rate × 52 × occupancy. NOI = income - expenses. Cap = NOI/price.

Where this fits in planning

This is a "what-if" tool, not a forecast. Use it to test ideas before committing: what happens if the rate is 2% lower than hoped, what happens if you add five more years. The value is in the scenarios you run, not the single answer you get from the defaults.

What this doesn't capture

Steady-rate math ignores real-world volatility. Actual returns are lumpy; sequence-of-returns risk matters most in drawdown; fees and taxes drag on compound growth; and behaviour changes in drawdowns can reduce outcomes below the projection. The number represents one scenario rather than a forecast.