Norfolk Plan

Crown Point, IN 46307

$299,990D-

3 bd · 2.5 ba · 1,543 sqft · Built — · Townhouse · Active · 168 DOM

Cashflow @ list (25.0% down · 7.5%)

• Estimated rent: $2,546/mo
• Mortgage (P&I): −$1,689
• Tax + insurance: −$537
• HOA: −$0
• Vac / Maint / Mgmt: −$535
• Net cashflow: $-214/mo
• Annual: $-2,566/yr
• Cap rate: 5.50%
• Cash-on-cash: -2.85%
• DSCR: 0.87
• 1% rule: 0.79%
• Cash to close: $90,157

Investor read

• This is a 3-bed/2.5-bath townhouse listed at $300k. Condition is rated good.
• At list price, monthly cash flow is $-214 ($-3k/yr) — negative.
• To cash-flow at today's rent, offer at most $291k (3.0% below list).
• To meet the 1% rule (rent ≥ 1% of price), the offer needs to be $255k (15.1% below list).
• It's been on market 168 days — a 12% lower offer ($264k) is reasonable based on typical stale-listing flexibility.
• Recommended offer: $255k (15.1% below list) — sets the bar for 1% rule.
• Local home prices are declining (-3.0%/yr); year-one equity from $2k of loan paydown is wiped out by about $10k of value loss. Plan a longer hold.
• Location reads 77/100 on livability (#45 in IN, #3,244 nationally) — a middle-class / working-renter tenant base. Strengths: crime A+, employment A+, cost of living A+; Watch: amenities F, commute F, health & safety D-.
• Crown Point Community School Corporation (suburban): math 51% / reading 61% proficiency, ranked #23 of 301 in IN (top 8%) — acceptable for families but not a draw, mixed tenant base, ~2y average lease; only 18% free/reduced lunch — higher-income household profile.
• Zoned schools: Solon Robinson Elementary School (math 59% / reading 57%, grade C+, #160 of 994 statewide, top 17%, 528 students, 34% FRL); Robert Taft Middle School (math 37% / reading 57%, grade D+, #65 of 330 statewide, top 21%, 1,091 students, 23% FRL); Crown Point High School (math 51% / reading 80%, grade B, #29 of 369 statewide, top 8%, 2,948 students, 22% FRL).
• Market conditions: Rents rising (+2.5%/yr); 1149 active listings in the ZIP; 7 comparable units currently listed for rent nearby; rentals leasing fast (median 7d on market — plan ~1-2 weeks tenant-placement turnaround); 43% of comp listings sitting > 30 days — soft ceiling on asking rent; solid renter incomes; 1,642 units permitted in Lake County in 2024 (14 in 5+ unit buildings).
• Lake County population projected to shrink 7% by 2050 — rents likely to lag national; underwrite the cash flow, not the appreciation.
• Cap rate 5.5% vs local median 4.0% in Crown Point — top-decile yield for the area; either an underpriced asset or a hidden risk that comps aren't pricing in. Stress-test before assuming the spread holds.

Questions for listing agent

• What do current leases actually rent for vs. the listed asking? Can we see a recent rent roll and the last 12 months of T-12 income?
• It's been on market 168 days. Have you received any prior offers? Is the seller open to a 15% concession, seller financing, or rate buy-down credit?
• Why hasn't it sold? Are there any deal-killer items the seller is aware of (foundation, flood, title, zoning, code violations)?
• Is there a deadline driving the sale (1031 exchange, divorce, estate, relocation)? That informs how much negotiation room exists.
• Schools are B-rated — typically a magnet for longer-tenancy family renters. What's the average tenant stay here, and is there a school-zone premium baked into asking?
• The area grade is low — what's the realistic commute time and amenity access for the typical tenant pool here? Any planned neighborhood developments (good or bad) we should know about?
• What's the average days-on-market for RENTAL listings here right now (not sales)? A rising rental-DOM trend means longer vacancies and softer asking-rent achievability than the comps imply.
• What's the recent tenant-quality profile in this submarket — average credit score on applications, eviction rate, late-payment / NSF rate, and stable-employment percentage? A property-management company in the area should have these aggregated.