704 E 18th St · Spencer, IA 51301

$170,000

3 bd · 1.5 ba · 1,236 sqft · SingleFamily public records · 6 Days on market

Built 1976 0.26 ac lot $138/sqft · at area comps Est $164k · at est.

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Why this score? — see what drove the D 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 +13.3/30.0
• Schools +6.1/10.0
• ARV discount +5.9/15.0
• DSCR +4.0/10.0
• Livability +3.9/5.0
• 1% rule +3.7/10.0
• Rent growth +2.5/5.0
• Condition / age +2.5/5.0
• Appreciation +0.0/10.0

Listing remarks

Smart Start - Designed for easy main-level living with room to grow over time, this three-bedroom ranch home puts everything you need right within reach. The kitchen offers warm cabinetry, a peninsula with counter seating and track lighting, while the living room feels bright and inviting, centered around a bay window that brings in natural light and adds a touch of character. With a little TLC, this home offers wonderful potential. The full bath is thoughtfully adapted with a walk-in bathtub, while the primary bedroom includes its own walk through half bath. One of the bedrooms features laundry hookups, giving you the flexibility to keep it as a bedroom or create a convenient laundry space

Key facts

• Nicely sized yard
• Walk-in bathtub
• Main-level living

Tags

• MAIN-LEVEL LIVING
• WALK-IN BATHTUB
• LAUNDRY HOOKUPS
• FULL UNFINISHED BASEMENT
• COMPOSITE DECK
• NICELY SIZED YARD

Property features AI

Exterior

• Parking: Attached concrete garage with 2 spaces
• Utilities: Public water; Public sewer
• Home design: Single-family residence; One story
• Construction: Block construction; Asphalt roof
• Exterior features: Deck; Publicly maintained road

Interior

• Kitchen: Dishwasher; Disposal; Refrigerator
• Bathrooms: 1 full bathroom; 1 half bathroom
• Heating & cooling: Electric forced-air heating; Central air conditioning
• Interior features: Dishwasher; Disposal; Refrigerator; Unfinished full basement
• Laundry & utility: Main-level laundry

What this means for you Summary

Snapshot

• This is a 3-bed/1.5-bath single-family listed at $170k.

Deal economics

• At list price, monthly cash flow is $1 ($9/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 $148k (13.2% below list).
• Recommended offer: $148k (13.2% below list) — sets the bar for 1% rule.
• Cap rate 6.3% vs local median 4.7% in Spencer — 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 77/100 on livability (#168 in IA, #3,020 nationally) — a middle-class / working-renter tenant base. Strengths: schools A+, crime A+, cost of living A+; Watch: employment D, amenities F, commute F.
• Spencer Community School District (town): math 73% / reading 72% proficiency, ranked #114 of 289 in IA (top 39%) — strong family-tenant draw, lease renewals of 3-5y typical.
• Market conditions: 109 active listings in the ZIP; 11 units permitted in Clay County in 2024 (0 in 5+ unit buildings).

Forward outlook

• Local home prices are declining (-3.0%/yr); year-one equity from $1k of loan paydown is wiped out by about $5k of value loss. Plan a longer hold.
• Clay County population projected to shrink 6% by 2050 — rents likely to lag national; underwrite the cash flow, not the appreciation.

Negotiation context

• Only 6 days on market — expect competitive offers; lowballing is unlikely to land.

Recommended offer $147,520 (13.2% below list)

Questions for the listing agent

1. Built in 1976 — when were the roof, HVAC, electrical panel, plumbing, and water heater last replaced?
2. Is there a deadline driving the sale (1031 exchange, divorce, estate, relocation)? That informs how much negotiation room exists.
3. Schools are A-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?
4. 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?
5. 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.
6. 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.
7. 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: 0.87% ✗
• Cap rate: 6.30%
• Cash-on-cash: 0.02%
• DSCR: 1.00
• GRM: 9.6

CMA / ARV

• ARV (median comp): $164,258
• List price: $170,000
• Delta: 3.50%
• Verdict: FAIR
• Comps: 20 within 1.0 mi

Show comp detail 12 sales within ~0.75 mi

Address	Dist	Beds/Ba	Sqft	Sold	Price	$/sf	Match
704 E 18th St	0.00mi	3/1.5	1,236 (0%)	0mo	$175,100	$142	100
611 E 17th St	0.06mi	3/2.0	1,288 (+4%)	6mo	$142,500	$111	83
313 E 14th St	0.36mi	3/1.0	1,200 (-3%)	6mo	$135,000	$113	72
1607 Grand Ave	0.54mi	3/1.0	1,272 (+3%)	3mo	$159,000	$125	66
702 E 8th St	0.69mi	3/2.0	1,250 (+1%)	2mo	$162,000	$130	62
321 E 14th St	0.34mi	2/1.0 (-1)	1,118 (-10%)	1mo	$134,890	$121	60
1222 4th Ave E	0.40mi	2/2.0 (-1)	1,144 (-7%)	4mo	$170,000	$149	58
507 E 9th St	0.61mi	3/1.5	1,331 (+8%)	2mo	$155,000	$116	57
1622 1st Ave E	0.42mi	2/1.0 (-1)	1,104 (-11%)	0mo	$174,900	$158	55
723 E 11th St	0.44mi	3/1.0	1,380 (+12%)	4mo	$14,000	$10	54
106 E 10th St	0.69mi	3/1.0	1,296 (+5%)	6mo	$112,500	$87	53
314 E 12th St	0.48mi	2/1.0 (-1)	1,357 (+10%)	9mo	$40,000	$29	47

Match score weights: distance 35% · size 25% · config 20% · recency 20%. Top-matched comps best support the ARV.

Projected returns pro-forma

-3.0% appreciation · 3.0% rent growth · sell at horizon

5-year hold

• IRR: -16.3%
• Equity multiple: 0.42×
• Total profit: $-27,484
• Equity at exit: $25,348

10-year hold

• IRR: -8.0%
• Equity multiple: 0.50×
• Total profit: $-23,807
• Equity at exit: $14,698

Cash invested: $47,600 (down + closing). Projections, not guarantees.

Landlord ↔ Tenant lean methodology

• Overall (STATE): 83 Strongly Landlord-Friendly
• State Iowa: 83 Strongly Landlord-Friendly · R+6
• County: — inherits STATE
• City: — inherits STATE

3-day pay-or-quit; mostly landlord-friendly statewide.

Methodology + full state rankings →

ZIP-level market 51301

• Home prices YoY: -35.0%
• Active inventory: 109
• Price-to-rent: 9.6×

Monthly cashflow live

• Estimated rent: $1,475 medium
• Mortgage (P&I): −$891
• Tax from tax record: −$202 /mo · $2,428/yr
• Insurance: −$71
• HOA: −$0
• Vacancy / Maint / Mgmt: −$310
• Net cashflow: $1

Break-even live

Break-even rent $1,474

Max offer price $170,000

Occupancy floor 95%

Sensitivity live

Price	-10% $97	-5% $49	+0% $1	+5% $-47	+10% $-95
Rent	-10% $-116	-5% $-58	+0% $1	+5% $59	+10% $117
Rate	-1.0pp $86	-0.5pp $44	base $1	+0.5pp $-43	+1.0pp $-88

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: $42,500
• Closing costs: $5,100
• Reserves months: —
• Total cash needed: —

Listing history 3 events

1. 2026-05-07
   status Pending 1064-char remark
2. 2026-05-07
   historical Active Under Contract 1064-char remark
3. 2026-05-01
   listed $170,000 Active 1064-char remark

ⓘ Source: listings_history table (triggers on properties + properties_extension) + one-shot backfill from property_details.listing_events for pre-trigger history.

Tax reassessment forecast IA · Partial reset (capped growth)

• Current annual tax: $2,428 · $202/mo
• Projected year-2 tax: $2,548 · $212/mo
• Expected delta: +$120/yr (+$10/mo · 5.0%)

ⓘ 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 3/10 Moderate
• 🌡 Heat 2/10 Low 7 d/yr ≥100°F today · 16 d/yr by 30 yrs out
• 💨 Wind 2/10 Low
• 🫁 Air quality 2/10 Low 1 unhealthy d/yr today · 1 by 30 yrs out

Taxation est. · year 1

• Rental income: $17,702
• − Mortgage interest: −$9,523
• − Property taxes: −$2,428
• − Insurance: −$850
• − Repairs & maintenance: −$1,416
• − Management: −$1,416
• − Depreciation: −$4,945
• Taxable loss: −$2,876
• Est. tax savings @ 24.0%: +$690
• After-tax cash flow: $699/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: Spencer Community School District
• NCES district ID: 1926910
• Math proficiency: 73% ▼ -7.00%
• Reading proficiency: 72% ▼ -6.00%
• Median HH income: $45,474
• Composite: 61.02/100
• National rank: #797
• State rank: #114 of 289 in IA

Livability — Spencer

• Score: 77/100
• State rank: #168
• US rank: #3020

Category grades

Amenities F Commute F Cost of living A+ Crime A+ Employment D Housing A+ Health & safety A+ User ratings D

Schools grade is shown separately in the Schools card above.

Census & demographics

• Census place: Spencer, IA
• City population: 12,402
• Population (ZIP): 12,402

Population outlook (Clay County) Hauer SSP2

• Today (2025): 16,277 people
• By 2030: 16,073 · -1.3%
• By 2040: 15,638 · -3.9%
• By 2050: 15,315 · -5.9%
• By 2075: 15,026 · -7.7%
• By 2100: 14,638 · -10.1%

Race, ethnicity, and origin ACS 2023

• Neighborhood character: Predominantly White (91%)
• Race & ethnicity: White 91% Hispanic / Latino 5% Two or more races 4%
• Hispanic origin (detail): Mexican 4%
• Common ancestry: Portuguese 14% Iranian 4% Lithuanian 2%
• Foreign-born: 1% · Canada, South Korea
• Languages at home: 98% English-only · Spanish 1%

Political lean MEDSL · Clay

• 2024 margin: Solid R (+43.2) · D 27.8% · R 71.0% · Other 1.2%
• 2008→2024 swing: -38.1pp toward R · 2008: -5.1pp · 2024: -43.2pp
• All cycles: 2024: R+43.2 2020: R+38.7 2016: R+42.4 2012: R+18.7 2008: R+5.1

Not yet ingested

• Civics: —

Market trends

• HPI YoY: ▼ -103.43%
• Current HPI: 192.1741
• Rent YoY: —
• Metro: —
• State GDP YoY: ▲ 2.48%
• F500 in state: 4

Industry mix (Fortune 500 HQ in IA)

Industry	F500 HQs	Revenue
▸Financial Services	1	$16B
▸Retail / Convenience	1	$15B

Price history

+3.0% since first listed

4 events — show timeline

• 2026-06-17 Sold (MLS) $175,100 Iowa Great Lakes BOR
• 2026-05-07 Pending — Iowa Great Lakes BOR
• 2026-05-07 Contingent — Iowa Great Lakes BOR
• 2026-05-01 Listed $170,000 Iowa Great Lakes BOR

Property tax history

+3.2%/yr

Latest (2025): $2,428 · +3.7% YoY. Source: county tax records.