506 Hattie St

Schenectady, NY 12308

$60,000D

4 bd · 2.0 ba · 1,576 sqft · Built 1900 · MultiFamily · Pending · 131 DOM

Cashflow @ list (25.0% down · 7.5%)

• Estimated rent: $4,420/mo
• Mortgage (P&I): −$315
• Tax + insurance: −$100
• HOA: −$0
• Vac / Maint / Mgmt: −$928
• Net cashflow: $3,077/mo
• Annual: $36,926/yr
• Cap rate: 67.84%
• Cash-on-cash: 219.80%
• DSCR: 10.78
• 1% rule: 7.37%
• Cash to close: $16,800

Investor read

• This is a 4-bed/2.0-bath multifamily listed at $60k.
• At list price, monthly cash flow is $3k ($37k/yr) — positive.
• The deal already cash-flows at list — no discount required.
• Meets the 1% rule at list price ($4k rent vs $60k).
• It's been on market 131 days — a 12% lower offer ($53k) is reasonable based on typical stale-listing flexibility.
• Recommended offer: $53k (12.0% below list) — sets the bar for market timing.
• Local home prices are declining (-3.0%/yr); year-one equity from $415 of loan paydown is wiped out by about $2k of value loss. Plan a longer hold.
• Location reads 78/100 on livability (#167 in NY, #2,597 nationally) — a middle-class / working-renter tenant base. Strengths: commute A+, health & safety A+, cost of living A; Watch: employment D+, crime F.
• Schenectady City School District (urban): math 38% / reading 34% proficiency, ranked #556 of 590 in NY (top 94%) — families likely to look elsewhere, expect single-tenant / working-renter base with shorter leases; 65% free/reduced lunch — lower-income household profile, screen leases tightly.
• Zoned schools: Jessie T Zoller Elementary School (math 37% / reading 52%, grade F, #1,277 of 2,108 statewide, top 64%, 451 students, 69% FRL); Mont Pleasant Middle School (math 2% / reading 27%, grade F, #704 of 729 statewide, top 98%, 671 students, 81% FRL); Schenectady High School (math 75% / reading 90%, grade A, #446 of 1,100 statewide, top 41%, 2,743 students, 71% FRL).
• Watch-outs: built in 1900 — expect roof / HVAC / electrical / plumbing capex.
• Market conditions: 79 active listings in the ZIP; 13 comparable units currently listed for rent nearby; rentals at typical pace (median 25d on market — plan ~3-4 weeks tenant-placement turnaround); 46% of comp listings sitting > 30 days — soft ceiling on asking rent; 154 units permitted in Schenectady County in 2024 (54 in 5+ unit buildings).
• Schenectady County population projected to shrink 4% by 2050 — rents likely to lag national; underwrite the cash flow, not the appreciation.
• At projected returns (-3.0% appreciation + 3.0% rent growth), your $17k cash investment doubles in ~1 year — after that, you're playing with house money.
• Cap rate 67.8% vs local median 6.3% in Schenectady — 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.
• At $4,420/mo this rent would consume 84% of the median local household income ($63k/yr) (locally 1016% of renters already pay >50% of income on rent) — very limited rent-growth headroom before tenants either downsize or default.

Questions for listing agent

• It's been on market 131 days. Have you received any prior offers? Is the seller open to a 12% concession, seller financing, or rate buy-down credit?
• Built in 1900 — when were the roof, HVAC, electrical panel, plumbing, and water heater last replaced?
• 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.
• Crime grade is F in this area — have there been break-ins, vandalism, or insurance claims at this property in the last 3 years? What carrier currently insures it and at what premium?
• 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.