1186 Trout Brook Dr

West Hartford, CT 06119

$399,000D

3 bd · 2.0 ba · 1,380 sqft · Built 1961 · SingleFamily · Under Contract · 6 DOM

Cashflow @ list (25.0% down · 7.5%)

• Estimated rent: $2,905/mo
• Mortgage (P&I): −$2,092
• Tax + insurance: −$865
• HOA: −$0
• Vac / Maint / Mgmt: −$610
• Net cashflow: $-663/mo
• Annual: $-7,951/yr
• Cap rate: 4.30%
• Cash-on-cash: -7.12%
• DSCR: 0.68
• 1% rule: 0.73%
• Cash to close: $111,720

Investor read

• This is a 3-bed/2.0-bath single-family listed at $399k.
• At list price, monthly cash flow is $-663 ($-8k/yr) — negative.
• To cash-flow at today's rent, offer at most $282k (29.3% below list).
• To meet the 1% rule (rent ≥ 1% of price), the offer needs to be $291k (27.2% below list).
• Only 6 days on market — expect competitive offers; lowballing is unlikely to land.
• Recommended offer: $282k (29.3% below list) — sets the bar for cash-flow.
• Local home prices are declining (-3.0%/yr); year-one equity from $3k of loan paydown is wiped out by about $12k of value loss. Plan a longer hold.
• Location reads 79/100 on livability (#27 in CT, #1,989 nationally) — a middle-class / working-renter tenant base. Strengths: employment A+, housing A+, crime B+; Watch: amenities F, cost of living F.
• West Hartford School District (urban): math 56% / reading 67% proficiency, ranked #39 of 153 in CT (top 26%) — acceptable for families but not a draw, mixed tenant base, ~2y average lease; only 16% free/reduced lunch — higher-income household profile.
• Zoned schools: Morley School (math 62% / reading 67%, grade B, #118 of 553 statewide, top 23%, 299 students, 15% FRL); King Philip Middle School (math 53% / reading 69%, grade B+, #41 of 175 statewide, top 25%, 815 students, 26% FRL); Hall High School (math 62% / reading 82%, grade B+, #14 of 194 statewide, top 8%, 1,408 students, 20% FRL) — zoned schools at 21% FRL track the district average.
• Market conditions: Rents rising fast (+5.4%/yr); 39 active listings in the ZIP; 39 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; solid renter incomes; 1,867 units permitted in Capitol Planning Region in 2024 (1,399 in 5+ unit buildings).
• 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.
• Climate carrying-cost: major wind risk, 27% chance of damaging wind over 30y; extreme-heat days projected 7→16/yr by 2055 (HVAC capex compounding) — expect insurance premiums to compound above CPI over the hold.
• Cap rate 4.3% vs local median 3.3% in West Hartford — meaningfully above typical; check what's discounted (condition, days-on-market, listing class) to confirm the premium yield is real.
• This rent runs 35% of the median local income ($100k/yr) — at the standard rent-burdened threshold; future hikes will face affordability resistance.

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?
• Built in 1961 — 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.
• 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.