301 S Van Rensselaer St

Rensselaer, IN 47978

$169,900D-

2 bd · 2.0 ba · 2,900 sqft · Built 1897 · SingleFamily · Active · 236 DOM

Cashflow @ list (25.0% down · 7.5%)

• Estimated rent: $980/mo
• Mortgage (P&I): −$891
• Tax + insurance: −$143
• HOA: −$0
• Vac / Maint / Mgmt: −$206
• Net cashflow: $-259/mo
• Annual: $-3,111/yr
• Cap rate: 4.46%
• Cash-on-cash: -6.54%
• DSCR: 0.71
• 1% rule: 0.58%
• Cash to close: $47,572

Investor read

• This is a 2-bed/2.0-bath single-family listed at $170k.
• At list price, monthly cash flow is $-259 ($-3k/yr) — negative.
• To cash-flow at today's rent, offer at most $124k (27.0% below list).
• To meet the 1% rule (rent ≥ 1% of price), the offer needs to be $98k (42.3% below list).
• It's been on market 236 days — a 12% lower offer ($150k) is reasonable based on typical stale-listing flexibility.
• Recommended offer: $98k (42.3% 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 $5k of value loss. Plan a longer hold.
• Location reads 70/100 on livability (#145 in IN) — a middle-class / working-renter tenant base. Strengths: cost of living A+, housing A, health & safety B; Watch: employment C-, amenities F, commute F.
• Rensselaer Central School Corporation (town): math 45% / reading 53% proficiency, ranked #63 of 301 in IN (top 21%) — families likely to look elsewhere, expect single-tenant / working-renter base with shorter leases.
• Zoned schools: Rensselaer Middle School (math 38% / reading 45%, grade F, #108 of 330 statewide, top 34%, 342 students, 47% FRL); Rensselaer Central High School (math 32% / reading 72%, grade D+, #106 of 369 statewide, top 31%, 472 students, 42% FRL).
• Watch-outs: built in 1897 — expect roof / HVAC / electrical / plumbing capex.
• Market conditions: 81 active listings in the ZIP; 93 units permitted in Jasper County in 2024 (5 in 5+ unit buildings).
• Jasper County population projected at -11% by 2050 — secular population decline; favor cash flow + early exit over multi-decade hold.
• 2 sale attempts since 2y ago; this cycle's ask has dropped $15k (8%) from the opening price — seller is motivated, your offer sets the floor, not the list.
• Cap rate 4.5% vs local median 3.6% in Rensselaer — meaningfully above typical; check what's discounted (condition, days-on-market, listing class) to confirm the premium yield is real.

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?
• It's been on market 236 days. Have you received any prior offers? Is the seller open to a 42% concession, seller financing, or rate buy-down credit?
• Built in 1897 — 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.