4 E Washington St

Lakeland, GA 31635

$125,000D

3 bd · 1.0 ba · 1,120 sqft · Built 1955 · SingleFamily · Active · 130 DOM

Cashflow @ list (25.0% down · 7.5%)

• Estimated rent: $1,038/mo
• Mortgage (P&I): −$656
• Tax + insurance: −$86
• HOA: −$0
• Vac / Maint / Mgmt: −$218
• Net cashflow: $79/mo
• Annual: $948/yr
• Cap rate: 7.05%
• Cash-on-cash: 2.71%
• DSCR: 1.12
• 1% rule: 0.83%
• Cash to close: $35,000

Investor read

• This is a 3-bed/1.0-bath single-family listed at $125k.
• At list price, monthly cash flow is $79 ($948/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 $104k (16.9% below list).
• It's been on market 130 days — a 12% lower offer ($110k) is reasonable based on typical stale-listing flexibility.
• Recommended offer: $104k (16.9% below list) — sets the bar for 1% rule.
• In year one you build about $6k of equity ($864 loan paydown + $6k appreciation (4.4% local appreciation)).
• Location reads 60/100 on livability (#379 in GA) — a middle-class / working-renter tenant base. Strengths: cost of living A+, crime B+, housing B+; Watch: health & safety D, amenities F, commute F.
• Lanier County (rural): math 33% / reading 38% proficiency, ranked #67 of 174 in GA (top 38%) — families likely to look elsewhere, expect single-tenant / working-renter base with shorter leases; 65% free/reduced lunch — lower-income household profile, screen leases tightly.
• Zoned schools: Lanier County Primary School (498 students, 86% FRL); Lanier County Middle School (math 27% / reading 41%, grade F, #201 of 470 statewide, top 44%, 413 students, 86% FRL); Lanier County High School (math 37% / reading 22%, grade F, #140 of 424 statewide, top 35%, 451 students, 86% FRL) — zoned schools average 86% FRL vs 65% district-wide (21 pts higher); higher-poverty schools than district average — tighter screening recommended.
• Watch-outs: built in 1955 — expect roof / HVAC / electrical / plumbing capex.
• Market conditions: 69 active listings in the ZIP; 2 comparable units currently listed for rent nearby; 35 units permitted in Lanier County in 2024 (0 in 5+ unit buildings).
• 4 sale attempts since 2y ago; this cycle's ask is 9900% above the opening price — seller raised mid-cycle; expect resistance to lowballs.
• Current owner paid $15k; list at $125k implies a 733% gain — meaningful room to come down on a strong offer.
• At projected returns (4.4% appreciation + 3.0% rent growth), your $35k cash investment doubles in ~5 years — after that, you're playing with house money.
• By year 6, paydown + projected appreciation supports a ~$34k cash-out refi (75% LTV) — recoverable capital for the next deal without selling this one.
• Cap rate 7.1% vs local median 4.7% in Lakeland — 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.

Questions for listing agent

• It's been on market 130 days. Have you received any prior offers? Is the seller open to a 17% concession, seller financing, or rate buy-down credit?
• Built in 1955 — when were the roof, HVAC, electrical panel, plumbing, and water heater last replaced?
• Why hasn't it sold? Are there any deal-killer items the seller is aware of (foundation, flood, title, zoning, code violations)?
• Is there a deadline driving the sale (1031 exchange, divorce, estate, relocation)? That informs how much negotiation room exists.
• 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?
• 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.