158 Albion St

Somerville, MA 02144

$1,399,900D

5 bd · 3.0 ba · 3,317 sqft · Built 1890 · MultiFamily · Active · 41 DOM

Cashflow @ list (25.0% down · 7.5%)

• Estimated rent: $9,737/mo
• Mortgage (P&I): −$7,341
• Tax + insurance: −$1,745
• HOA: −$0
• Vac / Maint / Mgmt: −$2,045
• Net cashflow: $-1,394/mo
• Annual: $-16,726/yr
• Cap rate: 5.10%
• Cash-on-cash: -4.27%
• DSCR: 0.81
• 1% rule: 0.70%
• Cash to close: $391,972

Investor read

• This is a 5-bed/3.0-bath multifamily listed at $1.40M.
• At list price, monthly cash flow is $-1k ($-17k/yr) — negative.
• To cash-flow at today's rent, offer at most $1.15M (17.6% below list).
• To meet the 1% rule (rent ≥ 1% of price), the offer needs to be $974k (30.4% below list).
• It's been on market 41 days — a 3% lower offer ($1.36M) is reasonable based on typical stale-listing flexibility.
• Recommended offer: $974k (30.4% below list) — sets the bar for 1% rule.
• In year one you build about $64k of equity ($10k loan paydown + $55k appreciation (3.9% local appreciation)).
• Location reads 84/100 on livability (#18 in MA, #752 nationally) — a professional / high-income tenant draw. Strengths: amenities A+, commute A+, employment A+; Watch: cost of living F.
• Somerville (suburban): math 26% / reading 43% proficiency, ranked #223 of 302 in MA (top 74%) — families likely to look elsewhere, expect single-tenant / working-renter base with shorter leases.
• Zoned schools: E Somerville Community (math 15% / reading 35%, grade F, #716 of 938 statewide, top 77%, 729 students, 0% FRL); Next Wave Junior High (math 24% / reading 24%, 15 students, 0% FRL); Somerville High (math 43% / reading 58%, grade D+, #181 of 343 statewide, top 53%, 1,310 students, 0% FRL) — zoned schools average 0% FRL vs 56% district-wide (56 pts lower); this property's tenant base skews higher-income than the district average.
• Watch-outs: built in 1890 — expect roof / HVAC / electrical / plumbing capex.
• Market conditions: Rents rising fast (+4.2%/yr); 52 active listings in the ZIP; 11 comparable units currently listed for rent nearby; rentals at typical pace (median 20d on market — plan ~3-4 weeks tenant-placement turnaround); high-income renter base; 3,670 units permitted in Middlesex County in 2024 (2,611 in 5+ unit buildings).
• Middlesex County population projected at +20% by 2050 — long-run rental-demand tailwind backs the buy-and-hold thesis.
• Current owner paid $110k; list at $1.40M implies a 1173% gain — meaningful room to come down on a strong offer.
• By year 2, paydown + projected appreciation supports a ~$104k cash-out refi (75% LTV) — recoverable capital for the next deal without selling this one.
• Climate carrying-cost: major wind risk, 63% chance of damaging wind over 30y; extreme-heat days projected 7→15/yr by 2055 (HVAC capex compounding) — expect insurance premiums to compound above CPI over the hold.
• Cap rate 5.1% vs local median 2.2% in Somerville — 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 $9,737/mo this rent would consume 78% of the median local household income ($150k/yr) (locally 1177% 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 41 days. Have you received any prior offers? Is the seller open to a 30% concession, seller financing, or rate buy-down credit?
• Built in 1890 — 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 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?
• 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.