4548 Springs Rd · Hickory, NC
Flood risk 1/10 · Minimal
- FEMA flood zone
- X (unshaded)
- Chance of flooding over 30 yrs
- 0.0%
- Est. flood insurance / yr
- $473 – $860
Fire risk 4/10 · Minor
- Est. fire insurance / yr
- $906 – $1,684
Heat risk 5/10 · Moderate
- Hot days now (above 102°F)
- 7 days/yr
- Hot days in 30 yrs
- 17 days/yr
Wind risk 2/10 · Minimal
- Chance of severe wind over 30 yrs
- 2.0%
Air-quality risk 3/10 · Minor
- Unhealthy air days now
- 2 days/yr
- Unhealthy air days in 30 yrs
- 3 days/yr
Risk factors via First Street. Map © Google.
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 +30.0/30.0
- DSCR +10.0/10.0
- 1% rule +9.3/10.0
- ARV discount +7.5/15.0
- Schools +4.5/10.0
- Livability +3.6/5.0
- Rent growth +2.5/5.0
- Condition / age +2.5/5.0
- Appreciation +0.0/10.0
$89,900
🖨 Deal sheet 📄 Offer letter ✓ Due diligence
Listing remarks
Handyman special being sold "as is" with some repairs complete and others started. Over half and acre lot. New roof installed. New windows installed. Well on property went dry so hook up to Hickory City water has been completed. New plumbing installation mostly complete with a few items still in need of completion/correction. New electrical wiring with new breaker box mostly complete with outlets and fixtures still needing to be installed. Front porch boards replaced. Back deck mostly replaced with a few items still needed to be complete. No information is available on the septic system and it has not been inspected. It was working when the house was last lived in but that has bee
Key facts
- Well on property
- New roof installed
- 0.56 acre lot
Tags
Property features AI
Finance
- Other: Zoned R-20; Directions: From Hickory, travel northeast on Springs Road. Property is about one mile on the right after Springs Road goes from four lanes to two lanes.
- HOA & community: No HOA
Exterior
- Parking: Driveway
- Utilities: City water; Sewer described as 'Other - See Remarks'
- Home design: Single-family residential home; Site-built construction; One level
- Construction: Asbestos siding/materials; Basement and crawl space foundation
- Exterior features: Lot is approximately 0.56 acres; Roads are gravel and paved; Publicly maintained road access
Interior
- Kitchen: No kitchen appliances specified
- Bedrooms: 1 bedroom on the main level
- Bathrooms: 1 full bathroom on the main level
- Heating & cooling: No heating; No cooling
- Interior features: 5 total rooms; Basement with dirt floor; Wood-burning fireplace; No heating system specified; No cooling system specified; No built-in appliances listed
- Laundry & utility: No laundry facilities (none listed)
Neighborhood map
What this means for you Summary
Snapshot
- This is a 2-bed/1.0-bath single-family listed at $90k.
Deal economics
- At list price, monthly cash flow is $466 ($6k/yr) — positive.
- The deal already cash-flows at list — no discount required.
- Meets the 1% rule at list price ($1k rent vs $90k).
- Cap rate 12.5% vs local median 2.9% in Hickory — 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.
Location & tenants
- Location reads 71/100 on livability (#92 in NC) — a middle-class / working-renter tenant base. Strengths: cost of living A+, housing A+, health & safety A+; Watch: crime F, amenities F, commute F.
- Catawba County Schools (rural): math 54% / reading 51% proficiency, ranked #54 of 178 in NC (top 30%) — acceptable for families but not a draw, mixed tenant base, ~2y average lease.
- Market conditions: 170 active listings in the ZIP; 2,016 units permitted in Catawba County in 2024 (255 in 5+ unit buildings).
Forward outlook
- 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.
- Catawba 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 + 3.0% rent growth), your $25k cash investment doubles in ~6 years — after that, you're playing with house money.
Negotiation context
- Only 1 days on market — expect competitive offers; lowballing is unlikely to land.
- Current owner paid $28k; list at $90k implies a 221% gain — meaningful room to come down on a strong offer.
Risks & watch-outs
- Watch-outs: built in 1947 — expect roof / HVAC / electrical / plumbing capex.
- Climate carrying-cost: extreme-heat days projected 7→17/yr by 2055 (HVAC capex compounding) — expect insurance premiums to compound above CPI over the hold.
Questions for the listing agent
- Built in 1947 — 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.
- Crime grade is F in this area — have there been break-ins, vandalism, or insurance claims at this property in the last 3 years? What carrier currently insures it and at what premium?
- 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.
Investment metrics
- 1% rule
- 1.43% ✓
- Cap rate
- 12.51%
- Cash-on-cash
- 22.22%
- DSCR
- 1.99
- GRM
- 5.8
CMA / ARV
No comps found within radius.
Projected returns pro-forma
-3.0% appreciation · 3.0% rent growth · sell at horizon
- IRR
- 15.0%
- Equity multiple
- 1.60×
- Total profit
- $15,093
- Equity at exit
- $13,404
- IRR
- 23.6%
- Equity multiple
- 3.04×
- Total profit
- $51,272
- Equity at exit
- $7,773
Cash invested: $25,172 (down + closing). Projections, not guarantees.
Landlord ↔ Tenant lean methodology
- Overall (STATE)
- 85 Strongly Landlord-Friendly
- State North Carolina
- 85 Strongly Landlord-Friendly · R+3
- County
- — inherits STATE
- City
- — inherits STATE
ZIP-level market 28613
- Home prices YoY
- -22.7%
- Active inventory
- 170
- Price-to-rent
- 5.8×
Monthly cashflow live
- Estimated rent
- $1,290 medium interval (Pro) →
- Mortgage (P&I)
- −$471
- Tax from tax record
- −$44 /mo · $526/yr
- Insurance
- −$37
- HOA
- −$0
- Vacancy / Maint / Mgmt
- −$271
- Net cashflow
- $466
Break-even live
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
- $22,475
- Closing costs
- $2,697
- Reserves months
- —
- Total cash needed
- —
Loan-product check · same deal, 3 products live
Conventional
25% down · 7.5% · 30yr
- Down + closing
- —
- Monthly P&I
- —
- Monthly cashflow
- —
- DSCR
- —
- Eligible?
- —
Personal DTI + credit; lowest rate.
DSCR
20% down · 8.5% · 30yr
- Down + closing
- —
- Monthly P&I
- —
- Monthly cashflow
- —
- DSCR
- —
- Eligible?
- —
No personal income docs; deal must DSCR.
Hard money
10% down · 12.0% · 12mo
- Down + closing
- —
- Monthly P&I
- —
- Monthly cashflow
- —
- DSCR
- —
- Eligible?
- —
Short-term bridge; refi at stabilization.
Listing history 2 events
-
2026-06-17remarks 689-char remark
-
2026-06-17$89,900 Active 1 DOM
ⓘ Source: listings_history table (triggers on properties + properties_extension) + one-shot
backfill from property_details.listing_events for pre-trigger history.
Tax reassessment forecast NC · Resets to sale price
- Current annual tax
- $526 · $44/mo
- Projected year-2 tax
- $737 · $61/mo
- Expected delta
- +$211/yr (+$18/mo · 40.1%)
ⓘ 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 5/10 Major 7 d/yr ≥102°F today · 17 d/yr by 30 yrs out
- Wind 2/10 Low 2% chance of damaging wind over 30 yrs
- Air quality 3/10 Moderate 2 unhealthy d/yr today · 3 by 30 yrs out
Nearby sold comps map
Loading sold comps map…
Walkable amenities ~0.75 mi
Loading nearby amenities…
Taxation est. · year 1
- Rental income
- $15,475
- − Mortgage interest
- −$5,036
- − Property taxes
- −$526
- − Insurance
- −$450
- − Repairs & maintenance
- −$1,238
- − Management
- −$1,238
- − Depreciation
- −$2,615
- Taxable income
- $4,373
- Est. tax owed @ 24.0%
- −$1,049
- After-tax cash flow
- $4,543/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
- Catawba County Schools
- NCES district ID
- 3700690
- Math proficiency
- 54% ▲ 9.00%
- Reading proficiency
- 51% ▲ 3.00%
- Median HH income
- $48,180
- Composite
- 44.71/100
- National rank
- #2754
- State rank
- #54 of 178 in NC
Livability — Hickory
- Score
- 71/100
- State rank
- #92
- US rank
- #6361
Category grades
Schools grade is shown separately in the Schools card above.
Census & demographics
- City population
- 84,442
- Population (ZIP)
- 23,486
Population outlook (Catawba County) Hauer SSP2
- Today (2025)
- 156,513 people
- By 2030
- 155,267 · -0.8%
- By 2040
- 151,110 · -3.5%
- By 2050
- 145,524 · -7.0%
- By 2075
- 134,047 · -14.4%
- By 2100
- 119,424 · -23.7%
Race, ethnicity, and origin ACS 2023
- Neighborhood character
- Predominantly White (70%)
- Race & ethnicity
- White 70% Hispanic / Latino 17% Two or more races 9% Asian 6% Black 3% Native American 1%
- Hispanic origin (detail)
- Mexican 10%
- Common ancestry
- Italian 2% Romanian 2% Serbian 2%
- Foreign-born
- 9% · Canada, China, Guatemala
- Languages at home
- 81% English-only · Spanish 14% Other Asian/Pacific 4%
Political lean MEDSL · Catawba
- 2024 margin
- Solid R (+38.0) · D 30.6% · R 68.6%
- 2008→2024 swing
- -13.0pp toward R · 2008: -25.0pp · 2024: -38.0pp
- All cycles
- 2024: R+38.0 2020: R+37.0 2016: R+38.0 2012: R+29.6 2008: R+25.0
Not yet ingested
- Civics
- —
Market trends
- HPI YoY
- ▼ -75.84%
- Current HPI
- 257.5894
- Rent YoY
- —
- Metro
- —
- State GDP YoY
- ▲ 3.28%
- F500 in state
- 26
Industry mix (Fortune 500 HQ in NC)
| Industry | F500 HQs | Revenue |
|---|---|---|
| Financial Services | 2 | $213B |
|
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| Retail | 2 | $95B |
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| Industrial Conglomerate | 1 | $38B |
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| Metals / Steel | 1 | $35B |
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| Utilities | 1 | $30B |
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| Industrial Machinery | 1 | $19B |
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Price history
+221.1% since first listed2 events — show timeline
- 2026-06-17 Listed $89,900 CANOPYMLS as Distributed by MLS Grid
- 2022-05-17 Sold (Public Records) $28,000 Public Records
Property tax history
+6.1%/yrLatest (2024): $526 · +4.0% YoY. Source: county tax records.
Cash-flow waterfall
monthlySold comps — $/sqft
last 12 mo · ≤1 miLoading sold comps…