540 E Linn St

Coggon, IA 52218

$165,000F

3 bd · 1.5 ba · 936 sqft · Built 1955 · SingleFamily · Pending · 2 DOM

Cashflow @ list (25.0% down · 7.5%)

• Estimated rent: $968/mo
• Mortgage (P&I): −$865
• Tax + insurance: −$196
• HOA: −$0
• Vac / Maint / Mgmt: −$203
• Net cashflow: $-297/mo
• Annual: $-3,560/yr
• Cap rate: 4.14%
• Cash-on-cash: -7.70%
• DSCR: 0.66
• 1% rule: 0.59%
• Cash to close: $46,200

Investor read

• This is a 3-bed/1.5-bath single-family listed at $165k.
• At list price, monthly cash flow is $-297 ($-4k/yr) — negative.
• To cash-flow at today's rent, offer at most $113k (31.8% below list).
• To meet the 1% rule (rent ≥ 1% of price), the offer needs to be $97k (41.3% below list).
• Only 2 days on market — expect competitive offers; lowballing is unlikely to land.
• Recommended offer: $97k (41.3% below list) — sets the bar for 1% rule.
• In year one you build about $18k of equity ($1k loan paydown + $16k appreciation (10.0% local appreciation)).
• Location reads 76/100 on livability (#196 in IA, #3,575 nationally) — a middle-class / working-renter tenant base. Strengths: employment A+, cost of living A+, housing A+; Watch: amenities F, commute F.
• North Linn Community School District (rural): math 73% / reading 77% proficiency, ranked #62 of 289 in IA (top 22%) — strong family-tenant draw, lease renewals of 3-5y typical; only 16% free/reduced lunch — higher-income household profile.
• Zoned schools: North Linn Elementary (math 77% / reading 62%, grade A-, #224 of 616 statewide, top 42%, 274 students, 24% FRL); North-Linn Middle School (math 72% / reading 77%, grade A, #76 of 246 statewide, top 33%, 95 students, 20% FRL); North-Linn Senior High School (math 72% / reading 87%, grade A-, #34 of 336 statewide, top 14%, 166 students, 24% FRL).
• Watch-outs: built in 1955 — expect roof / HVAC / electrical / plumbing capex.
• Market conditions: 17 active listings in the ZIP; 1,023 units permitted in Linn County in 2024 (456 in 5+ unit buildings).
• Linn County population projected at +16% by 2050 — long-run rental-demand tailwind backs the buy-and-hold thesis.
• 2 sale attempts since 8y 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 $86k; list at $165k implies a 92% gain — meaningful room to come down on a strong offer.
• By year 3, paydown + projected appreciation supports a ~$45k cash-out refi (75% LTV) — recoverable capital for the next deal without selling this one.

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 1955 — 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.