318 W 5th St

Oil City, PA 16301

$150,000D

3 bd · 2.0 ba · 1,944 sqft · Built 1895 · SingleFamily · Active · 35 DOM

Cashflow @ list (25.0% down · 7.5%)

• Estimated rent: $1,248/mo
• Mortgage (P&I): −$787
• Tax + insurance: −$218
• HOA: −$0
• Vac / Maint / Mgmt: −$262
• Net cashflow: $-18/mo
• Annual: $-216/yr
• Cap rate: 6.15%
• Cash-on-cash: -0.51%
• DSCR: 0.98
• 1% rule: 0.83%
• Cash to close: $42,000

Investor read

• This is a 3-bed/2.0-bath single-family listed at $150k.
• At list price, monthly cash flow is $-18 ($-216/yr) — negative.
• To cash-flow at today's rent, offer at most $147k (2.1% below list).
• To meet the 1% rule (rent ≥ 1% of price), the offer needs to be $125k (16.8% below list).
• It's been on market 35 days — a 3% lower offer ($146k) is reasonable based on typical stale-listing flexibility.
• Recommended offer: $125k (16.8% below list) — sets the bar for 1% rule.
• In year one you build about $4k of equity ($1k loan paydown + $3k appreciation (2.2% local appreciation)).
• Location reads 71/100 on livability (#704 in PA) — a middle-class / working-renter tenant base. Strengths: crime A+, cost of living A+, housing A+; Watch: amenities F, commute F, employment F.
• Oil City Area SD (town): math 20% / reading 46% proficiency, ranked #436 of 539 in PA (top 81%) — families likely to look elsewhere, expect single-tenant / working-renter base with shorter leases.
• Zoned schools: Seventh Street Sch (math 27% / reading 52%, grade F, #947 of 1,518 statewide, top 65%, 156 students, 100% FRL); Oil City Area Ms (math 11% / reading 46%, grade F, #395 of 512 statewide, top 78%, 582 students, 100% FRL); Oil City Shs (math 47% / reading 24%, grade F, #305 of 437 statewide, top 70%, 603 students, 74% FRL) — zoned schools average 92% FRL vs 52% district-wide (39 pts higher); higher-poverty schools than district average — tighter screening recommended.
• Watch-outs: built in 1895 — expect roof / HVAC / electrical / plumbing capex.
• Market conditions: 52 active listings in the ZIP; 2 comparable units currently listed for rent nearby; 42 units permitted in Venango County in 2024 (0 in 5+ unit buildings).
• Venango County population projected at -30% by 2050 — secular population decline; favor cash flow + early exit over multi-decade hold.
• 2 sale attempts since 3y ago with the ask held roughly flat each time — persistent listings suggest the price (not the market) is what's stuck; bring a comps-based counter.
• Current owner paid $56k; list at $150k implies a 168% gain — meaningful room to come down on a strong offer.
• At projected returns (2.2% appreciation + 3.0% rent growth), your $42k cash investment doubles in ~8 years — after that, you're playing with house money.
• By year 8, paydown + projected appreciation supports a ~$32k cash-out refi (75% LTV) — recoverable capital for the next deal without selling this one.
• Cap rate 6.1% vs local median 9.5% in Oil City — below-typical yield; the buyer is paying a premium for something (appreciation thesis, condition, location) that the cap rate doesn't capture.

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 35 days. Have you received any prior offers? Is the seller open to a 17% concession, seller financing, or rate buy-down credit?
• Built in 1895 — when were the roof, HVAC, electrical panel, plumbing, and water heater last replaced?
• Is there a deadline driving the sale (1031 exchange, divorce, estate, relocation)? That informs how much negotiation room exists.
• 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.
• How much new for-sale + rental construction is in the pipeline within 1–3 miles? Heavy new supply typically softens prices + rents 12–24 months out; constrained supply supports both.