218 Stephans St

Tiffin, IA 52340

$280,000D+

3 bd · 2.0 ba · 1,929 sqft · Built 1995 · SingleFamily · Pending · 31 DOM

Cashflow @ list (25.0% down · 7.5%)

• Estimated rent: $2,363/mo
• Mortgage (P&I): −$1,468
• Tax + insurance: −$436
• HOA: −$0
• Vac / Maint / Mgmt: −$496
• Net cashflow: $-37/mo
• Annual: $-443/yr
• Cap rate: 6.13%
• Cash-on-cash: -0.56%
• DSCR: 0.97
• 1% rule: 0.84%
• Cash to close: $78,400

Investor read

• This is a 3-bed/2.0-bath single-family listed at $280k.
• At list price, monthly cash flow is $-37 ($-443/yr) — negative.
• To cash-flow at today's rent, offer at most $273k (2.3% below list).
• To meet the 1% rule (rent ≥ 1% of price), the offer needs to be $236k (15.6% below list).
• It's been on market 31 days — a 3% lower offer ($272k) is reasonable based on typical stale-listing flexibility.
• Recommended offer: $236k (15.6% 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 $8k of value loss. Plan a longer hold.
• Location reads 75/100 on livability (#220 in IA, #4,085 nationally) — a middle-class / working-renter tenant base. Strengths: crime A+, employment A+, cost of living A+; Watch: health & safety D, amenities F, commute F.
• Clear Creek Amana Community School District (rural): math 73% / reading 75% proficiency, ranked #72 of 289 in IA (top 25%) — strong family-tenant draw, lease renewals of 3-5y typical; only 17% free/reduced lunch — higher-income household profile.
• Zoned schools: Tiffin Elementary (math 67% / reading 52%, grade B-, #390 of 616 statewide, top 69%, 400 students, 30% FRL); Clear Creek Amana Middle School (math 76% / reading 76%, grade A, #59 of 246 statewide, top 26%, 640 students, 29% FRL); Clear Creek Amana High School (math 71% / reading 85%, grade A-, #53 of 336 statewide, top 16%, 728 students, 23% FRL).
• Market conditions: 216 active listings in the ZIP; 3 comparable units currently listed for rent nearby; rentals at typical pace (median 16d on market — plan ~3-4 weeks tenant-placement turnaround); solid renter incomes; 714 units permitted in Johnson County in 2024 (158 in 5+ unit buildings).
• Johnson County population projected at +60% by 2050 — long-run rental-demand tailwind backs the buy-and-hold thesis.
• Current owner paid $202k; 39% above their basis — modest negotiation headroom, anchor on the comps not their cost.
• Cap rate 6.1% vs local median 4.2% in Tiffin — 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.

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?
• It's been on market 31 days. Have you received any prior offers? Is the seller open to a 16% concession, seller financing, or rate buy-down credit?
• 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.