738 Cleaver Farms Rd

Middletown, DE 19709

$89,900C+

3 bd · 2.0 ba · 1,080 sqft · Built 2006 · Other · Pending · 10 DOM

Cashflow @ list (25.0% down · 7.5%)

• Estimated rent: $2,648/mo
• Mortgage (P&I): −$471
• Tax + insurance: −$78
• HOA: −$838
• Vac / Maint / Mgmt: −$556
• Net cashflow: $704/mo
• Annual: $8,450/yr
• Cap rate: 15.69%
• Cash-on-cash: 33.57%
• DSCR: 2.49
• 1% rule: 2.94%
• Cash to close: $25,172

Investor read

• This is a 3-bed/2.0-bath other listed at $90k.
• At list price, monthly cash flow is $704 ($8k/yr) — positive.
• The deal already cash-flows at list — no discount required.
• Meets the 1% rule at list price ($3k rent vs $90k).
• Only 10 days on market — expect competitive offers; lowballing is unlikely to land.
• Local home prices are declining (-3.0%/yr); year-one equity from $622 of loan paydown is wiped out by about $3k of value loss. Plan a longer hold.
• Location reads 71/100 on livability (#17 in DE) — a middle-class / working-renter tenant base. Strengths: employment A+, housing A+, crime A-; Watch: cost of living C-, commute F.
• Appoquinimink School District (rural): math 37% / reading 52% proficiency, ranked #6 of 26 in DE (top 23%) — families likely to look elsewhere, expect single-tenant / working-renter base with shorter leases; only 18% free/reduced lunch — higher-income household profile.
• Watch-outs: HOA is 32% of rent.
• Market conditions: Rents rising (+1.1%/yr); 451 active listings in the ZIP; high-income renter base; 1,367 units permitted in New Castle County in 2024 (201 in 5+ unit buildings).
• New Castle County population projected at +9% by 2050 — modest demand growth; plan on rents tracking national, not racing it.
• At projected returns (-3.0% appreciation + 1.1% rent growth), your $25k cash investment doubles in ~4 years — after that, you're playing with house money.
• Cap rate 15.7% vs local median 3.0% in Middletown — 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 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 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?
• 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.