208 W Garfield St

Ashley, IN 46705

$74,000B-

3 bd · 1.0 ba · 1,112 sqft · Built 1900 · SingleFamily · Pending · 4 DOM

Cashflow @ list (25.0% down · 7.5%)

• Estimated rent: $992/mo
• Mortgage (P&I): −$388
• Tax + insurance: −$45
• HOA: −$0
• Vac / Maint / Mgmt: −$208
• Net cashflow: $351/mo
• Annual: $4,215/yr
• Cap rate: 11.99%
• Cash-on-cash: 20.34%
• DSCR: 1.91
• 1% rule: 1.34%
• Cash to close: $20,720

Investor read

• This is a 3-bed/1.0-bath single-family listed at $74k.
• At list price, monthly cash flow is $351 ($4k/yr) — positive.
• The deal already cash-flows at list — no discount required.
• Meets the 1% rule at list price ($992 rent vs $74k).
• Only 4 days on market — expect competitive offers; lowballing is unlikely to land.
• Local home prices are declining (-3.0%/yr); year-one equity from $512 of loan paydown is wiped out by about $2k of value loss. Plan a longer hold.
• Location reads 65/100 on livability (#320 in IN) — a middle-class / working-renter tenant base. Strengths: crime A+, cost of living A+, housing A+; Watch: employment C-, amenities F, commute F.
• Dekalb County Ctl United School District (town): math 42% / reading 50% proficiency, ranked #91 of 301 in IN (top 30%) — families likely to look elsewhere, expect single-tenant / working-renter base with shorter leases.
• Zoned schools: Country Meadow Elementary School (math 47% / reading 37%, grade F, #434 of 994 statewide, top 48%, 314 students, 43% FRL); Dekalb Middle School (math 34% / reading 52%, grade D-, #92 of 330 statewide, top 29%, 800 students, 47% FRL); Dekalb High School (math 43% / reading 70%, grade C, #70 of 369 statewide, top 19%, 1,075 students, 36% FRL).
• Watch-outs: built in 1900 — expect roof / HVAC / electrical / plumbing capex.
• Market conditions: 9 active listings in the ZIP; 209 units permitted in Steuben County in 2024 (72 in 5+ unit buildings).
• Steuben County population projected at -13% by 2050 — secular population decline; favor cash flow + early exit over multi-decade hold.
• At projected returns (-3.0% appreciation + 3.0% rent growth), your $21k cash investment doubles in ~6 years — after that, you're playing with house money.

Questions for listing agent

• 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 D-rated, which usually means shorter tenancies and higher turnover. Who's the typical renter profile here, and what's been the actual vacancy rate?
• 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.