409 5th St NE · Staples, MN 56479

$104,900

2 bd · 1.0 ba · 1,058 sqft · SingleFamily · 1 Days on market

Built 1950 10,280 sqft lot

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Why this score? — see what drove the B- grade

The composite is a weighted blend of 9 inputs, each scored 0–100. Each bar is that input's sub-score; the figure is the points it added to the 100-point composite (weight × sub-score).

• Cash flow +29.4/30.0
• DSCR +10.0/10.0
• 1% rule +7.6/10.0
• ARV discount +7.5/15.0
• Schools +3.2/10.0
• Livability +3.2/5.0
• Rent growth +2.5/5.0
• Condition / age +2.5/5.0
• Appreciation +0.0/10.0

Listing remarks

Professional Photos End of the Week. Charming home in Staples, MN! This quaint 2-bedroom, 1-bath home offers comfort with the potential to create a 3rd bedroom, office, laundry, or flex space to fit your needs on the main level. Enjoy a cozy layout, manageable yard, and a convenient location near a local park, schools, shopping, and everyday amenities. Tons of Potential with a full unfinished basement for additional living room or bedroom/s (need egress windows). Whether you are looking for a first home, investment property, or a simple place to downsize, this property offers great potential in a welcoming small-town setting. cash or conventional only. 3/4 bath main level (sink, toilet, tub

Key facts

• 0.24 acre lot
• Garage
• Built 1950

Property features AI

Exterior

• Parking: Detached/attached garage with 1 garage space (approx. 20 x 12, 240 sq ft); Asphalt driveway
• Utilities: City water (connected); City sewer (connected); Natural gas
• Home design: Residential property; One level; City view
• Construction: Block and frame construction; Block foundation; Asphalt roof (over 8 years old); Built with a 45 x 23 foundation
• Exterior features: Front porch; Patio; Vinyl exterior; Garage(s) on property; No fencing; City street frontage (publicly maintained)

Interior

• Kitchen: Dishwasher; Range; Refrigerator; Freezer
• Bedrooms: 2 bedrooms (including main floor primary bedroom)
• Bathrooms: One 3/4 bathroom (main floor; shower only); Basement bath access
• Heating & cooling: Forced air heating; No central air
• Interior features: Informal dining area; Kitchen window; Main floor primary bedroom; Main floor bedroom; City view; Patio
• Laundry & utility: Washer; Dryer (laundry located in basement)

What this means for you Summary

Snapshot

• This is a 2-bed/1.0-bath single-family listed at $105k.

Deal economics

• At list price, monthly cash flow is $371 ($4k/yr) — positive.
• The deal already cash-flows at list — no discount required.
• Meets the 1% rule at list price ($1k rent vs $105k).

Location & tenants

• Location reads 65/100 on livability (#539 in MN) — a middle-class / working-renter tenant base. Strengths: cost of living A+, housing A+, crime B+; Watch: health & safety C-, schools D, amenities F.
• Staples-Motley School District (rural): math 37% / reading 39% proficiency, ranked #238 of 301 in MN (top 79%) — families likely to look elsewhere, expect single-tenant / working-renter base with shorter leases.
• Market conditions: 50 active listings in the ZIP; 167 units permitted in Todd County in 2024 (78 in 5+ unit buildings).

Forward outlook

• Local home prices are declining (-3.0%/yr); year-one equity from $725 of loan paydown is wiped out by about $3k of value loss. Plan a longer hold.
• Todd County population projected at -28% by 2050 — secular population decline; favor cash flow + early exit over multi-decade hold.
• At projected returns (-3.0% appreciation + 3.0% rent growth), your $29k cash investment doubles in ~8 years — after that, you're playing with house money.

Negotiation context

• Only 1 days on market — expect competitive offers; lowballing is unlikely to land.

Risks & watch-outs

• Watch-outs: built in 1950 — expect roof / HVAC / electrical / plumbing capex.

Recommended offer $104,900

Questions for the listing agent

1. Built in 1950 — when were the roof, HVAC, electrical panel, plumbing, and water heater last replaced?
2. Is there a deadline driving the sale (1031 exchange, divorce, estate, relocation)? That informs how much negotiation room exists.
3. 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?
4. 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.
5. 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.
6. 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.

Investment metrics

• 1% rule: 1.26% ✓
• Cap rate: 10.54%
• Cash-on-cash: 15.17%
• DSCR: 1.67
• GRM: 6.6

CMA / ARV

No comps found within radius.

Projected returns pro-forma

-3.0% appreciation · 3.0% rent growth · sell at horizon

5-year hold

• IRR: 5.8%
• Equity multiple: 1.23×
• Total profit: $6,638
• Equity at exit: $15,641

10-year hold

• IRR: 15.2%
• Equity multiple: 2.23×
• Total profit: $36,181
• Equity at exit: $9,070

Cash invested: $29,372 (down + closing). Projections, not guarantees.

Landlord ↔ Tenant lean methodology

• Overall (STATE): 46 Balanced
• State Minnesota: 46 Balanced · D+2
• County: — inherits STATE
• City: — inherits STATE

2024 reforms strengthened tenant protections; ramsey/hennepin courts paced moderate to slow.

Methodology + full state rankings →

ZIP-level market 56479

• Home prices YoY: -6.1%
• Active inventory: 50
• Price-to-rent: 6.6×

Monthly cashflow live

• Estimated rent: $1,321 medium
• Mortgage (P&I): −$550
• Tax from tax record: −$79 /mo · $944/yr
• Insurance: −$44
• HOA: −$0
• Vacancy / Maint / Mgmt: −$277
• Net cashflow: $371

Break-even live

Break-even rent $851

Max offer price $104,900

Occupancy floor 67%

UW: 25.0% down · 7.5% · 30yr · 1.5% tax · 5.0% vac · 8.0% maint · 8.0% mgmt

Financing live

Cash to close

• Down payment: $26,225
• Closing costs: $3,147
• Reserves months: —
• Total cash needed: —

Listing history 2 events

1. 2026-05-12
   status Pending
2. 2026-05-11
   historical $104,900

ⓘ Source: listings_history table (triggers on properties + properties_extension) + one-shot backfill from property_details.listing_events for pre-trigger history.

Tax reassessment forecast MN · Partial reset (capped growth)

• Current annual tax: $944 · $79/mo
• Projected year-2 tax: $1,059 · $88/mo
• Expected delta: +$115/yr (+$10/mo · 12.2%)

ⓘ Screening estimate from a state-policy table — verify with the county assessor before closing.

Climate risk First Street

• 🌊 Flood 1/10 Low FEMA zone X (unshaded) · 0% chance over 30 yrs
• 🔥 Wildfire 4/10 Moderate
• 🌡 Heat 2/10 Low 7 d/yr ≥97°F today · 13 d/yr by 30 yrs out
• 💨 Wind 2/10 Low
• 🫁 Air quality 2/10 Low 1 unhealthy d/yr today · 1 by 30 yrs out

Taxation est. · year 1

• Rental income: $15,855
• − Mortgage interest: −$5,876
• − Property taxes: −$944
• − Insurance: −$524
• − Repairs & maintenance: −$1,268
• − Management: −$1,268
• − Depreciation: −$3,052
• Taxable income: $2,922
• Est. tax owed @ 24.0%: −$701
• After-tax cash flow: $3,754/yr

For passive investors: Depreciation is non-cash, so a rental often shows a tax loss while cash-flowing — sheltering income. Rental losses are passive: they offset passive income freely, and up to $25,000/yr can offset ordinary (W-2) income if you actively participate and your MAGI is under $100k (phasing out to $0 by $150k); unused losses carry forward. On sale, claimed depreciation is recaptured at up to 25%, and gains may owe capital-gains tax (a 1031 exchange can defer both). Figures are a year-1 estimate at your 24.0% rate — not tax advice; consult a CPA.

Schools (NCES district)

• District: Staples-Motley School District
• NCES district ID: 2733900
• Math proficiency: 37% ▼ -6.00%
• Reading proficiency: 39% ▼ -10.00%
• Median HH income: $41,979
• Composite: 32.07/100
• National rank: #5816
• State rank: #238 of 301 in MN

Livability — Staples

• Score: 65/100
• State rank: #539
• US rank: #12983

Category grades

Amenities F Commute F Cost of living A+ Crime B+ Employment D- Housing A+ Health & safety C- User ratings A

Schools grade is shown separately in the Schools card above.

Census & demographics

• Census place: Staples, MN
• Population (ZIP): 5,018

Population outlook (Todd County) Hauer SSP2

• Today (2025): 22,202 people
• By 2030: 20,962 · -5.6%
• By 2040: 18,352 · -17.3%
• By 2050: 15,904 · -28.4%
• By 2075: 11,348 · -48.9%
• By 2100: 7,801 · -64.9%

Race, ethnicity, and origin ACS 2023

• Neighborhood character: Predominantly White (86%)
• Race & ethnicity: White 86% Two or more races 7% Hispanic / Latino 6% Black 1%
• Hispanic origin (detail): Mexican 3% Puerto Rican 3%
• Common ancestry: Portuguese 16% Romanian 4% Lithuanian 3%
• Foreign-born: 0%
• Languages at home: 97% English-only · Spanish 1% German/W. Germanic 1%

Political lean MEDSL · Todd

• 2024 margin: Solid R (+53.5) · D 22.5% · R 76.0% · Other 1.5%
• 2008→2024 swing: -42.4pp toward R · 2008: -11.1pp · 2024: -53.5pp
• All cycles: 2024: R+53.5 2020: R+48.8 2016: R+47.7 2012: R+16.1 2008: R+11.1

Not yet ingested

• Civics: —

Market trends

• HPI YoY: ▼ -12.71%
• Current HPI: 194.5854
• Rent YoY: —
• Metro: —
• State GDP YoY: ▲ 2.41%
• F500 in state: 34

Industry mix (Fortune 500 HQ in MN)

Industry	F500 HQs	Revenue
▸Healthcare	2	$407B
▸Retail	2	$150B
▸Consumer Goods	2	$32B
▸Industrial Machinery	2	$6B
▸Agriculture	1	$40B
▸Healthcare / Medical Devices	1	$32B

Price history

2 events — show timeline

• 2026-05-12 Pending — NORTHSTARMLS as Distributed by MLS Grid
• 2026-05-11 Coming Soon $104,900 NORTHSTARMLS as Distributed by MLS Grid

Property tax history

+11.1%/yr

Latest (2025): $944 · -23.4% YoY. Source: county tax records.