103 Cherry St St

Rockwell, IA 50469

$146,000D-

3 bd · 1.0 ba · 1,566 sqft · Built 1900 · SingleFamily · Pending · 42 DOM

Cashflow @ list (25.0% down · 7.5%)

• Estimated rent: $1,134/mo
• Mortgage (P&I): −$766
• Tax + insurance: −$224
• HOA: −$0
• Vac / Maint / Mgmt: −$238
• Net cashflow: $-93/mo
• Annual: $-1,119/yr
• Cap rate: 5.53%
• Cash-on-cash: -2.74%
• DSCR: 0.88
• 1% rule: 0.78%
• Cash to close: $40,880

Investor read

• This is a 3-bed/1.0-bath single-family listed at $146k.
• At list price, monthly cash flow is $-93 ($-1k/yr) — negative.
• To cash-flow at today's rent, offer at most $130k (11.3% below list).
• To meet the 1% rule (rent ≥ 1% of price), the offer needs to be $113k (22.3% below list).
• It's been on market 42 days — a 3% lower offer ($142k) is reasonable based on typical stale-listing flexibility.
• Recommended offer: $113k (22.3% below list) — sets the bar for 1% rule.
• In year one you build about $376 of equity ($1k loan paydown + $-633 appreciation (-0.4% local appreciation)).
• Location reads 75/100 on livability (#225 in IA, #4,254 nationally) — a middle-class / working-renter tenant base. Strengths: cost of living A+, housing A+, health & safety A+; Watch: amenities F, commute F.
• West Fork Community School District (rural): math 54% / reading 69% proficiency, ranked #230 of 289 in IA (top 80%) — acceptable for families but not a draw, mixed tenant base, ~2y average lease.
• Watch-outs: built in 1900 — expect roof / HVAC / electrical / plumbing capex.
• Market conditions: 7 active listings in the ZIP; 54 units permitted in Cerro Gordo County in 2024 (6 in 5+ unit buildings).
• Cerro Gordo County population projected at -18% by 2050 — secular population decline; favor cash flow + early exit over multi-decade hold.
• 3 sale attempts since 4y 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 $125k; 17% above their basis — modest negotiation headroom, anchor on the comps not their cost.

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 42 days. Have you received any prior offers? Is the seller open to a 22% concession, seller financing, or rate buy-down credit?
• Built in 1900 — 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.