540 Coots Lake Rd

Rockmart, GA 30153

$208,000D

3 bd · 2.0 ba · 1,104 sqft · Built 2000 · SingleFamily · Active · 20 DOM

Cashflow @ list (25.0% down · 7.5%)

• Estimated rent: $1,739/mo
• Mortgage (P&I): −$1,091
• Tax + insurance: −$210
• HOA: −$0
• Vac / Maint / Mgmt: −$365
• Net cashflow: $73/mo
• Annual: $873/yr
• Cap rate: 6.71%
• Cash-on-cash: 1.50%
• DSCR: 1.07
• 1% rule: 0.84%
• Cash to close: $58,240

Investor read

• This is a 3-bed/2.0-bath single-family listed at $208k.
• At list price, monthly cash flow is $73 ($873/yr) — positive.
• The deal already cash-flows at list — no discount required.
• To meet the 1% rule (rent ≥ 1% of price), the offer needs to be $174k (16.4% below list).
• It's been on market 20 days — a 2% lower offer ($205k) is reasonable based on typical stale-listing flexibility.
• Recommended offer: $174k (16.4% below list) — sets the bar for 1% rule.
• Local home prices are declining (-3.0%/yr); year-one equity from $1k of loan paydown is wiped out by about $6k of value loss. Plan a longer hold.
• Location reads 70/100 on livability (#99 in GA) — a middle-class / working-renter tenant base. Strengths: cost of living A+, housing A+, health & safety A+; Watch: crime C-, amenities F, commute F.
• Polk County (town): math 21% / reading 28% proficiency, ranked #128 of 174 in GA (top 74%) — low school quality limits family demand, transient renter base, plan for 1-2y turnover; 62% free/reduced lunch — lower-income household profile, screen leases tightly.
• Zoned schools: Van Wert Elementary School (math 12% / reading 19%, grade F, #973 of 1,228 statewide, top 80%, 696 students, 78% FRL); Rockmart Middle School (math 22% / reading 31%, grade F, #282 of 470 statewide, top 61%, 706 students, 78% FRL); Rockmart High School (math 8% / reading 22%, grade F, #294 of 424 statewide, top 70%, 950 students, 78% FRL) — zoned schools average 78% FRL vs 62% district-wide (16 pts higher); higher-poverty schools than district average — tighter screening recommended.
• Market conditions: 204 active listings in the ZIP; 1 comparable units currently listed for rent nearby; 128 units permitted in Polk County in 2024 (0 in 5+ unit buildings).
• Polk County population projected to shrink 10% by 2050 — rents likely to lag national; underwrite the cash flow, not the appreciation.
• Cap rate 6.7% vs local median 4.2% in Rockmart — 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 36% of the median local income ($57k/yr) — at the standard rent-burdened threshold; future hikes will face affordability resistance.

Questions for listing agent

• Is there a deadline driving the sale (1031 exchange, divorce, estate, relocation)? That informs how much negotiation room exists.
• Schools are F-rated, which usually means shorter tenancies and higher turnover. Who's the typical renter profile here, and what's been the actual vacancy rate?
• 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.