26 Houseman Ave · Chatham, NY 12037

$215,000

2 bd · 1.0 ba · 736 sqft · SingleFamily public records · 18 Days on market

Built 1945 0.25 ac lot

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Why this score? — see what drove the D grade

The composite is a weighted blend of 9 inputs, each scored 0–100. Each bar is that input's sub-score; the figure is the points it added to the 100-point composite (weight × sub-score).

• Appreciation +10.0/10.0
• Cash flow +8.8/30.0
• ARV discount +7.5/15.0
• Schools +4.4/10.0
• Livability +3.2/5.0
• Rent growth +2.5/5.0
• Condition / age +2.5/5.0
• DSCR +2.4/10.0
• 1% rule +2.1/10.0

Listing remarks MLS

Looking for a starter home and willing to put in some sweat equity? Or looking to downsize and have the resources to throw at a renovation? This 2 bedroom, 1 bath, 736 square foot, bungalow built in 1945 may just be what you have been waiting for. It's a project no doubt but one that is manageable. It's being sold as is, but it has strong bones and working mechanical systems. There are hardwood floors throughout and the original fixtures and details are charming. There is an attached 1 car garage, and it sits on a small, easy to maintain . 25 acre lot. It still has the original slate roof which can last 100+ years when maintained and its clad with aluminum siding which is in great condition. The electrical system looks to be original as it's still on fuses, so that will definitely need to be upgraded unless you don't use any electronics. Above the garage is an extra room with a non functioning half bath. The seller believes this could be resurrected by replacing the waste line to the toilet. There is a large attic for storage and a full unfinished basement with a large stone double utility sink and laundry hook ups. All but 4 of the windows have been replaced at some point in time and are double paned insulated glass windows. This house has so much potential!! FHA may not work due to chipped and peeling paint on the original windows, but an FHA 203K renovation loan would work and is a great way to fund the needed electrical upgrade and other renovations. The location is excellent, sitting on the Village of Chatham and Ghent line in a great neighborhood, you are a block from the fairgrounds. And there are sidewalks all the way to Hudson Ave, Chatham schools, and Main Street shops and restaurants should you feel the urge to walk to dinner and movie. Enjoy the village lifestyle without the village taxes!

Key facts

• Attached garage
• Extra room
• Original fixtures

Tags

• HARDWOOD FLOORS
• ORIGINAL FIXTURES
• ATTACHED GARAGE
• SLATE ROOF
• ALUMINUM SIDING
• EXTRA ROOM

Property features AI

Exterior

• Parking: Driveway; One garage space (one total parking space)
• Utilities: Public water; Public sewer; Electric with fuses; Cable available
• Home design: Single-family residence; Fixer condition; Concrete perimeter foundation
• Construction: Aluminum siding
• Exterior features: Front porch; Slate roof

Interior

• Kitchen: Gas oven; Refrigerator
• Bedrooms: Two first-floor bedrooms; Bonus room on the second floor (non-functional half bath)
• Flooring: Tile; Hardwood; Linoleum
• Bathrooms: One full bathroom on the first floor
• Heating & cooling: Hot water radiant heating; Oil-fired heating
• Interior features: High-speed internet available; Built-in features; Storm door(s); Screens and double-pane windows
• Laundry & utility: Washer hookup in basement; Electric water heater

What this means for you Summary

Snapshot

• This is a 2-bed/1.0-bath single-family listed at $215k.

Deal economics

• At list price, monthly cash flow is $-178 ($-2k/yr) — negative.
• To cash-flow at today's rent, offer at most $184k (14.6% below list).
• To meet the 1% rule (rent ≥ 1% of price), the offer needs to be $153k (28.8% below list).
• Recommended offer: $153k (28.8% below list) — sets the bar for 1% rule.
• Cap rate 5.3% vs local median 2.5% in Chatham — 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.

Location & tenants

• Location reads 65/100 on livability (#686 in NY) — a middle-class / working-renter tenant base. Strengths: crime A+, housing A-; Watch: employment C-, cost of living C-, amenities F.
• Chatham Central School District (rural): math 48% / reading 53% proficiency, ranked #353 of 590 in NY (top 60%) — acceptable for families but not a draw, mixed tenant base, ~2y average lease.
• Zoned schools: Mary E Dardess Elementary School (math 32% / reading 52%, grade F, #1,361 of 2,108 statewide, top 67%, 360 students, 45% FRL); Chatham Middle School (math 37% / reading 57%, grade D+, #315 of 729 statewide, top 45%, 186 students, 44% FRL); Chatham High School (math 92% / reading 75%, grade A, #409 of 1,100 statewide, top 39%, 323 students, 41% FRL) — zoned schools average 43% FRL vs 26% district-wide (18 pts higher); higher-poverty schools than district average — tighter screening recommended.
• Market conditions: 31 active listings in the ZIP; 136 units permitted in Columbia County in 2024 (0 in 5+ unit buildings).

Forward outlook

• In year one you build about $23k of equity ($1k loan paydown + $22k appreciation (10.0% local appreciation)).
• Columbia County population projected at -22% by 2050 — secular population decline; favor cash flow + early exit over multi-decade hold.
• By year 2, paydown + projected appreciation supports a ~$37k cash-out refi (75% LTV) — recoverable capital for the next deal without selling this one.

Negotiation context

• It's been on market 18 days — a 2% lower offer ($212k) is reasonable based on typical stale-listing flexibility.
• 2 sale attempts 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.

Risks & watch-outs

• Watch-outs: built in 1945 — expect roof / HVAC / electrical / plumbing capex.

Recommended offer $153,058 (28.8% below list)

Questions for the listing agent

1. 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?
2. Built in 1945 — when were the roof, HVAC, electrical panel, plumbing, and water heater last replaced?
3. Is there a deadline driving the sale (1031 exchange, divorce, estate, relocation)? That informs how much negotiation room exists.
4. Schools are B-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?
5. 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?
6. 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.
7. 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.
8. 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.

Investment metrics

• 1% rule: 0.71% ✗
• Cap rate: 5.30%
• Cash-on-cash: -3.55%
• DSCR: 0.84
• GRM: 11.7

CMA / ARV

No comps found within radius.

Projected returns pro-forma

10.0% appreciation · 3.0% rent growth · sell at horizon

5-year hold

• IRR: 21.7%
• Equity multiple: 2.76×
• Total profit: $105,721
• Equity at exit: $193,689

10-year hold

• IRR: 19.6%
• Equity multiple: 6.32×
• Total profit: $320,171
• Equity at exit: $417,698

Cash invested: $60,200 (down + closing). Projections, not guarantees.

Landlord ↔ Tenant lean methodology

• Overall (STATE): 15 Strongly Tenant-Friendly
• State New York: 15 Strongly Tenant-Friendly · D+10
• County: — inherits STATE
• City: — inherits STATE

NYC rent stabilization (~1M units); 2019 HSTPA strengthened tenant rights; courts deeply backlogged.

Methodology + full state rankings →

ZIP-level market 12037

• Home prices YoY: 5.6%
• Active inventory: 31
• Price-to-rent: 11.7×

Monthly cashflow live

• Estimated rent: $1,531 medium
• Mortgage (P&I): −$1,127
• Tax from tax record: −$170 /mo · $2,041/yr
• Insurance: −$90
• HOA: −$0
• Vacancy / Maint / Mgmt: −$321
• Net cashflow: $-178

Break-even live

Break-even rent $1,756

Max offer price $183,558

Occupancy floor —

Sensitivity live

Price	-10% $-56	-5% $-117	+0% $-178	+5% $-239	+10% $-300
Rent	-10% $-299	-5% $-238	+0% $-178	+5% $-118	+10% $-57
Rate	-1.0pp $-70	-0.5pp $-123	base $-178	+0.5pp $-234	+1.0pp $-290

UW: 25.0% down · 7.5% · 30yr · 1.5% tax · 5.0% vac · 8.0% maint · 8.0% mgmt

Financing live

Cash to close

• Down payment: $53,750
• Closing costs: $6,450
• Reserves months: —
• Total cash needed: —

Listing history 13 events

1. 2026-06-21
   days on market $215,000 Active 18 DOM
2. 2026-06-19
   days on market $215,000 Active 16 DOM
3. 2026-06-18
   days on market $215,000 Active 15 DOM
4. 2026-06-17
   days on market $215,000 Active 14 DOM
5. 2026-06-16
   days on market $215,000 Active 13 DOM
6. 2026-06-15
   days on market $215,000 Active 12 DOM
7. 2026-06-14
   days on market $215,000 Active 10 DOM
8. 2026-06-12
   days on market $215,000 Active 9 DOM
9. 2026-06-09
   days on market $215,000 Active 6 DOM
10. 2026-06-08
    days on market $215,000 Active 5 DOM
11. 2026-06-07
    days on market $215,000 Active 4 DOM
12. 2026-06-04
    remarks 699-char remark
13. 2026-06-04
    listed $215,000 Active 1 DOM

ⓘ Source: listings_history table (triggers on properties + properties_extension) + one-shot backfill from property_details.listing_events for pre-trigger history.

Tax reassessment forecast NY · Partial reset (capped growth)

• Current annual tax: $2,041 · $170/mo
• Projected year-2 tax: $2,837 · $236/mo
• Expected delta: +$796/yr (+$66/mo · 39.0%)

ⓘ Screening estimate from a state-policy table — verify with the county assessor before closing.

Taxation est. · year 1

• Rental income: $18,367
• − Mortgage interest: −$12,043
• − Property taxes: −$2,041
• − Insurance: −$1,075
• − Repairs & maintenance: −$1,469
• − Management: −$1,469
• − Depreciation: −$6,255
• Taxable loss: −$5,986
• Est. tax savings @ 24.0%: +$1,437
• After-tax cash flow: $-699/yr

For passive investors: Depreciation is non-cash, so a rental often shows a tax loss while cash-flowing — sheltering income. Rental losses are passive: they offset passive income freely, and up to $25,000/yr can offset ordinary (W-2) income if you actively participate and your MAGI is under $100k (phasing out to $0 by $150k); unused losses carry forward. On sale, claimed depreciation is recaptured at up to 25%, and gains may owe capital-gains tax (a 1031 exchange can defer both). Figures are a year-1 estimate at your 24.0% rate — not tax advice; consult a CPA.

Schools (NCES district)

• District: Chatham Central School District
• NCES district ID: 3607110
• Math proficiency: 48% ▼ -12.00%
• Reading proficiency: 53% ▲ 1.00%
• Median HH income: $61,460
• Composite: 44.28/100
• National rank: #2835
• State rank: #353 of 590 in NY

Livability — Chatham

• Score: 65/100
• State rank: #686
• US rank: #12965

Category grades

Amenities F Commute F Cost of living C- Crime A+ Employment C- Housing A- Health & safety D- User ratings B+

Schools grade is shown separately in the Schools card above.

Census & demographics

• Population (ZIP): 4,045

Population outlook (Columbia County) Hauer SSP2

• Today (2025): 58,662 people
• By 2030: 56,557 · -3.6%
• By 2040: 51,324 · -12.5%
• By 2050: 45,790 · -21.9%
• By 2075: 35,232 · -39.9%
• By 2100: 25,846 · -55.9%

Race, ethnicity, and origin ACS 2023

• Neighborhood character: Predominantly White (83%)
• Race & ethnicity: White 83% Two or more races 12% Hispanic / Latino 2%
• Common ancestry: Lithuanian 3% Romanian 3% Iranian 3%
• Foreign-born: 6% · Canada
• Languages at home: 89% English-only · Other Indo-European 6% German/W. Germanic 3% Spanish 2%

Political lean MEDSL · Columbia

• 2024 margin: D (+14.7) · D 57.4% · R 42.6%
• 2008→2024 swing: +1.3pp toward D · 2008: 13.4pp · 2024: 14.7pp
• All cycles: 2024: D+14.7 2020: D+16.7 2016: D+1.4 2012: D+11.7 2008: D+13.4

Not yet ingested

• Civics: —

Market trends

• HPI YoY: ▲ 22.31%
• Current HPI: 419.8449
• Rent YoY: —
• Metro: —
• State GDP YoY: ▲ 2.60%
• F500 in state: 92

Industry mix (Fortune 500 HQ in NY)

Industry	F500 HQs	Revenue
▸Financial Services	10	$950B
▸Consumer Goods	9	$162B
▸Insurance	4	$225B
▸Telecommunications	2	$144B
▸Pharmaceuticals	2	$112B
▸Media / Entertainment	2	$69B

Price history

+0.0% since first listed

2 events — show timeline

• 2026-06-01 Listed $215,000 Global MLS
• 2026-06-01 Listed $215,000 HVCRMLS

Property tax history

+5.1%/yr

Latest (2025): $2,041 · +6.0% YoY. Source: county tax records.