278 Woodridge Ave

Cheektowaga, NY 14225

$289,900D

4 bd · 1.5 ba · 1,391 sqft · Built 1942 · SingleFamily · Pending · 11 DOM

Cashflow @ list (25.0% down · 7.5%)

• Estimated rent: $2,646/mo
• Mortgage (P&I): −$1,520
• Tax + insurance: −$620
• HOA: −$0
• Vac / Maint / Mgmt: −$556
• Net cashflow: $-51/mo
• Annual: $-608/yr
• Cap rate: 6.08%
• Cash-on-cash: -0.75%
• DSCR: 0.97
• 1% rule: 0.91%
• Cash to close: $81,172

Investor read

• This is a 4-bed/1.5-bath single-family listed at $290k.
• At list price, monthly cash flow is $-51 ($-608/yr) — negative.
• To cash-flow at today's rent, offer at most $281k (3.1% below list).
• To meet the 1% rule (rent ≥ 1% of price), the offer needs to be $265k (8.7% below list).
• Only 11 days on market — expect competitive offers; lowballing is unlikely to land.
• Recommended offer: $265k (8.7% 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 84/100 on livability (#54 in NY, #811 nationally) — a professional / high-income tenant draw. Strengths: commute A+, housing A+, health & safety A+; Watch: crime C-.
• Cleveland Hill Union Free School District (urban): math 42% / reading 46% proficiency, ranked #468 of 590 in NY (top 79%) — families likely to look elsewhere, expect single-tenant / working-renter base with shorter leases.
• Zoned schools: Cleveland Hill Elementary School (math 27% / reading 43%, grade F, #1,569 of 2,108 statewide, top 75%, 646 students, 63% FRL); Cleveland Hill Middle School (math 37% / reading 52%, grade D, #348 of 729 statewide, top 50%, 298 students, 64% FRL); Cleveland Hill High School (math 87% / reading 75%, grade A, #485 of 1,100 statewide, top 45%, 385 students, 56% FRL) — zoned schools average 61% FRL vs 43% district-wide (19 pts higher); higher-poverty schools than district average — tighter screening recommended.
• Watch-outs: built in 1942 — expect roof / HVAC / electrical / plumbing capex.
• Market conditions: 209 active listings in the ZIP; 4 comparable units currently listed for rent nearby; rentals leasing fast (median 4d on market — plan ~1-2 weeks tenant-placement turnaround); 1,244 units permitted in Erie County in 2024 (563 in 5+ unit buildings).
• 3 sale attempts since 11y 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.
• Current owner paid $125k; list at $290k implies a 132% gain — meaningful room to come down on a strong offer.
• Cap rate 6.1% vs local median 3.8% in Cheektowaga — 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.
• At $2,646/mo this rent would consume 47% of the median local household income ($67k/yr) (locally 991% of renters already pay >50% of income on rent) — very limited rent-growth headroom before tenants either downsize or default.

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?
• Built in 1942 — 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.
• 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.