515 Green Fern Dr

Summerville, SC 29483

$299,900D-

3 bd · 2.5 ba · 1,532 sqft · Built 2024 · Townhouse · Active · 15 DOM

Cashflow @ list (25.0% down · 7.5%)

• Estimated rent: $2,234/mo
• Mortgage (P&I): −$1,573
• Tax + insurance: −$231
• HOA: −$0
• Vac / Maint / Mgmt: −$469
• Net cashflow: $-38/mo
• Annual: $-459/yr
• Cap rate: 6.14%
• Cash-on-cash: -0.55%
• DSCR: 0.98
• 1% rule: 0.75%
• Cash to close: $83,972

Investor read

• This is a 3-bed/2.5-bath townhouse listed at $300k.
• At list price, monthly cash flow is $-38 ($-459/yr) — negative.
• To cash-flow at today's rent, offer at most $293k (2.3% below list).
• To meet the 1% rule (rent ≥ 1% of price), the offer needs to be $223k (25.5% below list).
• It's been on market 15 days — a 2% lower offer ($295k) is reasonable based on typical stale-listing flexibility.
• Recommended offer: $223k (25.5% below list) — sets the bar for 1% rule.
• Local home prices are declining (-3.0%/yr); year-one equity from $2k of loan paydown is wiped out by about $9k of value loss. Plan a longer hold.
• Location reads 63/100 on livability (#167 in SC) — a middle-class / working-renter tenant base. Strengths: housing A+, cost of living B+; Watch: amenities F, commute F, health & safety F.
• Berkeley 01 (suburban): math 35% / reading 48% proficiency, ranked #30 of 80 in SC (top 38%) — families likely to look elsewhere, expect single-tenant / working-renter base with shorter leases.
• Zoned schools: Nexton Elementary (math 52% / reading 55%, grade C, #137 of 597 statewide, top 23%, 1,025 students, 38% FRL); Cane Bay Middle (math 29% / reading 47%, grade F, #86 of 229 statewide, top 39%, 1,487 students, 30% FRL); Cane Bay High (math 50% / reading 84%, grade B, #73 of 196 statewide, top 41%, 2,158 students, 28% FRL) — zoned schools average 32% FRL vs 48% district-wide (17 pts lower); this property's tenant base skews higher-income than the district average.
• Market conditions: Rents rising (+1.4%/yr); 741 active listings in the ZIP; 5 comparable units currently listed for rent nearby; rentals at typical pace (median 24d on market — plan ~3-4 weeks tenant-placement turnaround); solid renter incomes; 3,183 units permitted in Berkeley County in 2024 (580 in 5+ unit buildings).
• Berkeley County population projected at +48% by 2050 — long-run rental-demand tailwind backs the buy-and-hold thesis.
• 2 sale attempts since 3y ago with the ask held roughly flat each time — persistent listings suggest the price (not the market) is what's stuck; bring a comps-based counter.
• Cap rate 6.1% vs local median 4.0% in Summerville — 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.
• This rent runs 31% of the median local income ($86k/yr) — at the standard rent-burdened threshold; future hikes will face affordability resistance.

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?
• 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.
• 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.