610 4th St St SW

Le Mars, IA 51031

$215,000D-

3 bd · 1.0 ba · 1,020 sqft · Built 1962 · SingleFamily · Pending · 7 DOM

Cashflow @ list (25.0% down · 7.5%)

• Estimated rent: $1,714/mo
• Mortgage (P&I): −$1,127
• Tax + insurance: −$243
• HOA: −$0
• Vac / Maint / Mgmt: −$360
• Net cashflow: $-17/mo
• Annual: $-198/yr
• Cap rate: 6.20%
• Cash-on-cash: -0.33%
• DSCR: 0.99
• 1% rule: 0.80%
• Cash to close: $60,200

Investor read

• This is a 3-bed/1.0-bath single-family listed at $215k.
• At list price, monthly cash flow is $-17 ($-198/yr) — negative.
• To cash-flow at today's rent, offer at most $212k (1.4% below list).
• To meet the 1% rule (rent ≥ 1% of price), the offer needs to be $171k (20.3% below list).
• Only 7 days on market — expect competitive offers; lowballing is unlikely to land.
• Recommended offer: $171k (20.3% below list) — sets the bar for 1% rule.
• Local home prices are declining (-3.0%/yr); year-one equity from $1k of loan paydown is wiped out by about $6k of value loss. Plan a longer hold.
• Location reads 82/100 on livability (#48 in IA, #1,235 nationally) — a professional / high-income tenant draw. Strengths: crime A+, cost of living A+, housing A+; Watch: amenities F, commute F.
• Le Mars Community School District (town): math 73% / reading 72% proficiency, ranked #96 of 289 in IA (top 33%) — strong family-tenant draw, lease renewals of 3-5y typical.
• Zoned schools: Kluckhohn Elementary School (math 76% / reading 76%, grade A, #123 of 616 statewide, top 20%, 439 students, 35% FRL); Le Mars Middle School (math 71% / reading 71%, grade A, #110 of 246 statewide, top 44%, 488 students, 38% FRL); Le Mars High School (math 73% / reading 75%, grade B+, #103 of 336 statewide, top 32%, 675 students, 30% FRL).
• Market conditions: 59 active listings in the ZIP; 1 comparable units currently listed for rent nearby; 147 units permitted in Plymouth County in 2024 (112 in 5+ unit buildings).
• Current owner paid $85k; list at $215k implies a 153% gain — meaningful room to come down on a strong offer.
• Cap rate 6.2% vs local median 2.7% in Le Mars — 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?
• Built in 1962 — 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.
• Schools are A-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.
• 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.