720 15TH St

Union City, NJ 07087

$729,000D-

6 bd · 2.0 ba · 1,928 sqft · Built 1913 · SingleFamily · Under Contract · 31 DOM

Cashflow @ list (25.0% down · 7.5%)

• Estimated rent: $3,758/mo
• Mortgage (P&I): −$3,823
• Tax + insurance: −$1,363
• HOA: −$0
• Vac / Maint / Mgmt: −$789
• Net cashflow: $-2,217/mo
• Annual: $-26,609/yr
• Cap rate: 2.64%
• Cash-on-cash: -13.04%
• DSCR: 0.42
• 1% rule: 0.52%
• Cash to close: $204,120

Investor read

• This is a 6-bed/2.0-bath single-family listed at $729k.
• At list price, monthly cash flow is $-2k ($-27k/yr) — negative.
• To cash-flow at today's rent, offer at most $337k (53.7% below list).
• To meet the 1% rule (rent ≥ 1% of price), the offer needs to be $376k (48.5% below list).
• It's been on market 31 days — a 3% lower offer ($707k) is reasonable based on typical stale-listing flexibility.
• Recommended offer: $337k (53.7% below list) — sets the bar for cash-flow.
• In year one you build about $78k of equity ($5k loan paydown + $73k appreciation (10.0% local appreciation)).
• Location reads 77/100 on livability (#117 in NJ, #2,998 nationally) — a middle-class / working-renter tenant base. Strengths: amenities A+, commute A+, health & safety A; Watch: cost of living F.
• Union City School District (suburban): math 15% / reading 36% proficiency, ranked #399 of 472 in NJ (top 84%) — low school quality limits family demand, transient renter base, plan for 1-2y turnover; 85% free/reduced lunch — lower-income household profile, screen leases tightly.
• Zoned schools: Veterans' Memorial Elementary School (math 7% / reading 26%, grade F, #1,094 of 1,303 statewide, top 85%, 551 students, 87% FRL); Emerson Middle School (math 15% / reading 40%, grade F, #340 of 431 statewide, top 80%, 1,001 students, 87% FRL); Union City High School (math 12% / reading 35%, grade F, #331 of 399 statewide, top 83%, 3,025 students, 83% FRL) — zoned schools at 86% FRL track the district average.
• Watch-outs: built in 1913 — expect roof / HVAC / electrical / plumbing capex.
• Market conditions: Rents flat; 228 active listings in the ZIP; 1 comparable units currently listed for rent nearby; 5,310 units permitted in Hudson County in 2024 (4,154 in 5+ unit buildings).
• Hudson County population projected at +29% by 2050 — long-run rental-demand tailwind backs the buy-and-hold thesis.
• By year 2, paydown + projected appreciation supports a ~$125k cash-out refi (75% LTV) — recoverable capital for the next deal without selling this one.
• Climate carrying-cost: major wind risk, 27% chance of damaging wind over 30y; extreme-heat days projected 7→14/yr by 2055 (HVAC capex compounding) — expect insurance premiums to compound above CPI over the hold.
• At $3,758/mo this rent would consume 70% of the median local household income ($64k/yr) (locally 6042% of renters already pay >50% of income on rent) — very limited rent-growth headroom before tenants either downsize or default.

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 54% concession, seller financing, or rate buy-down credit?
• Built in 1913 — 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.
• 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.