5625 Massachusetts St

Merrillville, IN 46410

$434,900B-

7 bd · 4.0 ba · 3,500 sqft · Built 1969 · MultiFamily · Pending · 7 DOM

Cashflow @ list (25.0% down · 7.5%)

• Estimated rent: $5,293/mo
• Mortgage (P&I): −$2,281
• Tax + insurance: −$578
• HOA: −$0
• Vac / Maint / Mgmt: −$1,112
• Net cashflow: $1,322/mo
• Annual: $15,870/yr
• Cap rate: 9.94%
• Cash-on-cash: 13.03%
• DSCR: 1.58
• 1% rule: 1.22%
• Cash to close: $121,772

Investor read

• This is a 3×2bd/1ba + 1×1bd/1ba units multifamily listed at $435k. Condition is rated good.
• At list price, monthly cash flow is $1k ($16k/yr) — positive. Per door: $331/mo.
• The deal already cash-flows at list — no discount required.
• Meets the 1% rule at list price ($5k rent vs $435k).
• Only 7 days on market — expect competitive offers; lowballing is unlikely to land.
• Local home prices are declining (-3.0%/yr); year-one equity from $3k of loan paydown is wiped out by about $13k of value loss. Plan a longer hold.
• Location reads 76/100 on livability (#50 in IN, #3,393 nationally) — a middle-class / working-renter tenant base. Strengths: commute A+, cost of living A+, housing A+; Watch: schools D+, amenities F, health & safety D-.
• Merrillville Community School Corporation (suburban): math 22% / reading 36% proficiency, ranked #240 of 301 in IN (top 80%) — low school quality limits family demand, transient renter base, plan for 1-2y turnover.
• Market conditions: Rents rising fast (+4.1%/yr); 264 active listings in the ZIP; 1,642 units permitted in Lake County in 2024 (14 in 5+ unit buildings).
• Lake County population projected to shrink 7% by 2050 — rents likely to lag national; underwrite the cash flow, not the appreciation.
• At projected returns (-3.0% appreciation + 4.1% rent growth), your $122k cash investment doubles in ~8 years — after that, you're playing with house money.
• Cap rate 9.9% vs local median 4.7% in Merrillville — 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.
• At $5,293/mo this rent would consume 99% of the median local household income ($64k/yr) (locally 1644% of renters already pay >50% of income on rent) — very limited rent-growth headroom before tenants either downsize or default.

Questions for listing agent

• Can we see the unit-by-unit rent roll, current vacancy, and any below-market leases? What's the average tenancy length?
• What capital expenditures (roof, boiler, parking lot, exteriors) have been made in the last 5 years, and what's planned in the next 2?
• Built in 1969 — 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 D-rated, which usually means shorter tenancies and higher turnover. Who's the typical renter profile here, and what's been the actual vacancy rate?
• 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 apartment / multifamily construction is in the pipeline within 1–3 miles? Heavy new supply (>2% of stock underway) typically softens rents 12–24 months out; light construction supports rent growth.