118 N Front St

Coplay, PA 18037

$225,900D+

3 bd · 1.5 ba · 1,260 sqft · Built 1900 · Townhouse · Pending · 4 DOM

Cashflow @ list (25.0% down · 7.5%)

• Estimated rent: $2,227/mo
• Mortgage (P&I): −$1,185
• Tax + insurance: −$481
• HOA: −$0
• Vac / Maint / Mgmt: −$468
• Net cashflow: $93/mo
• Annual: $1,122/yr
• Cap rate: 6.79%
• Cash-on-cash: 1.77%
• DSCR: 1.08
• 1% rule: 0.99%
• Cash to close: $63,252

Investor read

• This is a 3-bed/1.5-bath townhouse listed at $226k.
• At list price, monthly cash flow is $93 ($1k/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 $223k (1.4% below list).
• Only 4 days on market — expect competitive offers; lowballing is unlikely to land.
• Recommended offer: $223k (1.4% 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 $7k of value loss. Plan a longer hold.
• Location reads 82/100 on livability (#152 in PA, #1,271 nationally) — a professional / high-income tenant draw. Strengths: crime A+, cost of living A+, housing A+; Watch: amenities D, commute F.
• Whitehall-Coplay SD (suburban): math 28% / reading 50% proficiency, ranked #356 of 539 in PA (top 66%) — families likely to look elsewhere, expect single-tenant / working-renter base with shorter leases.
• Zoned schools: George D Steckel El Sch (math 37% / reading 52%, grade F, #815 of 1,518 statewide, top 56%, 565 students, 100% FRL); Whitehall-Coplay Ms (math 14% / reading 49%, grade F, #367 of 512 statewide, top 73%, 982 students, 100% FRL); Whitehall Hs (math 57% / reading 15%, grade F, #300 of 437 statewide, top 70%, 1,459 students, 85% FRL) — zoned schools average 95% FRL vs 38% district-wide (57 pts higher); higher-poverty schools than district average — tighter screening recommended.
• Watch-outs: built in 1900 — expect roof / HVAC / electrical / plumbing capex.
• Market conditions: 31 active listings in the ZIP; 7 comparable units currently listed for rent nearby; rentals leasing fast (median 5d on market — plan ~1-2 weeks tenant-placement turnaround); 765 units permitted in Lehigh County in 2024 (286 in 5+ unit buildings).
• Lehigh County population projected at +21% by 2050 — long-run rental-demand tailwind backs the buy-and-hold thesis.
• 3 sale attempts since 11y ago; this cycle's ask is 100300% above the opening price — seller raised mid-cycle; expect resistance to lowballs.
• Current owner paid $115k; list at $226k implies a 97% gain — meaningful room to come down on a strong offer.
• Climate carrying-cost: extreme-heat days projected 7→15/yr by 2055 (HVAC capex compounding) — expect insurance premiums to compound above CPI over the hold.

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 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?
• 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.