217 Van Buren St

Defiance, OH 43512

$109,000C-

3 bd · 2.0 ba · 1,436 sqft · Built 1900 · SingleFamily · Active · 36 DOM

Cashflow @ list (25.0% down · 7.5%)

• Estimated rent: $990/mo
• Mortgage (P&I): −$572
• Tax + insurance: −$173
• HOA: −$0
• Vac / Maint / Mgmt: −$208
• Net cashflow: $38/mo
• Annual: $452/yr
• Cap rate: 6.71%
• Cash-on-cash: 1.48%
• DSCR: 1.07
• 1% rule: 0.91%
• Cash to close: $30,520

Investor read

• This is a 3-bed/2.0-bath single-family listed at $109k.
• At list price, monthly cash flow is $38 ($452/yr) — positive.
• The deal already cash-flows at list — no discount required.
• To meet the 1% rule (rent ≥ 1% of price), the offer needs to be $99k (9.2% below list).
• It's been on market 36 days — a 3% lower offer ($106k) is reasonable based on typical stale-listing flexibility.
• Recommended offer: $99k (9.2% below list) — sets the bar for 1% rule.
• Local home prices are declining (-3.0%/yr); year-one equity from $754 of loan paydown is wiped out by about $3k of value loss. Plan a longer hold.
• Location reads 71/100 on livability (#448 in OH) — a middle-class / working-renter tenant base. Strengths: cost of living A+, housing A+, crime B+; Watch: employment D, amenities F, commute F.
• Defiance City (town): math 48% / reading 51% proficiency, ranked #449 of 656 in OH (top 68%) — families likely to look elsewhere, expect single-tenant / working-renter base with shorter leases.
• Zoned schools: Defiance Elementary School (math 58% / reading 50%, grade C, #829 of 1,584 statewide, top 53%, 1,044 students, 65% FRL); Defiance Middle School (math 42% / reading 49%, grade D+, #467 of 654 statewide, top 72%, 586 students, 54% FRL); Defiance High School (math 37% / reading 57%, grade D-, #435 of 781 statewide, top 59%, 709 students, 45% FRL).
• Watch-outs: built in 1900 — expect roof / HVAC / electrical / plumbing capex.
• Market conditions: 135 active listings in the ZIP; 41 units permitted in Defiance County in 2024 (0 in 5+ unit buildings).
• Defiance County population projected at -16% by 2050 — secular population decline; favor cash flow + early exit over multi-decade hold.
• 8 sale attempts since 21y 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.
• Cap rate 6.7% vs local median 2.5% in Defiance — 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.
• This rent is only 16% of the median local income ($72k/yr) — well below the 30% rent-burden line; pricing power to push rent on renewal without tenant pushback.

Questions for listing agent

• It's been on market 36 days. Have you received any prior offers? Is the seller open to a 9% 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 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?
• 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.