138 Azalea Cir #138

Romeoville, IL 60446

$285,000D-

3 bd · 2.5 ba · 1,564 sqft · Built 2000 · Townhouse · Active · 1 DOM

Cashflow @ list (25.0% down · 7.5%)

• Estimated rent: $2,732/mo
• Mortgage (P&I): −$1,495
• Tax + insurance: −$475
• HOA: −$269
• Vac / Maint / Mgmt: −$574
• Net cashflow: $-80/mo
• Annual: $-959/yr
• Cap rate: 5.96%
• Cash-on-cash: -1.20%
• DSCR: 0.95
• 1% rule: 0.96%
• Cash to close: $79,800

Investor read

• This is a 3-bed/2.5-bath townhouse listed at $285k.
• At list price, monthly cash flow is $-80 ($-959/yr) — negative.
• To cash-flow at today's rent, offer at most $273k (4.1% below list).
• To meet the 1% rule (rent ≥ 1% of price), the offer needs to be $273k (4.1% below list).
• Only 1 days on market — expect competitive offers; lowballing is unlikely to land.
• Recommended offer: $273k (4.1% below list) — sets the bar for 1% rule.
• Local home prices are declining (-3.0%/yr); year-one equity from $2k of loan paydown is wiped out by about $9k of value loss. Plan a longer hold.
• Location reads 74/100 on livability (#266 in IL, #4,960 nationally) — a middle-class / working-renter tenant base. Strengths: employment A+, housing A+, crime A; Watch: commute D, amenities F, health & safety F.
• Valley View CUSD 365U (suburban): math 21% / reading 28% proficiency, ranked #289 of 620 in IL (top 47%) — low school quality limits family demand, transient renter base, plan for 1-2y turnover.
• Zoned schools: Kenneth L Hermansen Elementary (math 17% / reading 17%, grade F, #1,141 of 2,056 statewide, top 59%, 449 students, 0% FRL); A Vito Martinez Middle School (math 21% / reading 34%, grade F, #295 of 665 statewide, top 45%, 638 students, 0% FRL); Romeoville High School (math 21% / reading 29%, grade F, #247 of 693 statewide, top 36%, 1,922 students, 0% FRL) — zoned schools average 0% FRL vs 51% district-wide (51 pts lower); this property's tenant base skews higher-income than the district average.
• Market conditions: Rents rising fast (+7.2%/yr); 65 active listings in the ZIP; 19 comparable units currently listed for rent nearby; rentals leasing fast (median 2d on market — plan ~1-2 weeks tenant-placement turnaround); solid renter incomes; 2,028 units permitted in Will County in 2024 (530 in 5+ unit buildings).
• Will County population projected to shrink 4% by 2050 — rents likely to lag national; underwrite the cash flow, not the appreciation.
• 4 sale attempts since 18y 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 $230k; 24% above their basis — modest negotiation headroom, anchor on the comps not their cost.
• Cap rate 6.0% vs local median 4.5% in Romeoville — 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 runs 31% of the median local income ($106k/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?
• What does the HOA fee cover, when was the last increase, and are there any pending special assessments or reserve-fund shortfalls?
• 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?
• 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.