310 N Walnut St

Creston, IA 50801

$11,700D+

4 bd · 1.0 ba · 1,145 sqft · Built 1898 · SingleFamily · Active · 217 DOM

Cashflow @ list (25.0% down · 7.5%)

• Estimated rent: $1,203/mo
• Mortgage (P&I): −$61
• Tax + insurance: −$20
• HOA: −$0
• Vac / Maint / Mgmt: −$253
• Net cashflow: $869/mo
• Annual: $10,431/yr
• Cap rate: 95.45%
• Cash-on-cash: 318.42%
• DSCR: 15.17
• 1% rule: 10.28%
• Cash to close: $3,276

Investor read

• This is a 4-bed/1.0-bath single-family listed at $12k.
• At list price, monthly cash flow is $869 ($10k/yr) — positive.
• The deal already cash-flows at list — no discount required.
• Meets the 1% rule at list price ($1k rent vs $12k).
• It's been on market 217 days — a 12% lower offer ($10k) is reasonable based on typical stale-listing flexibility.
• Recommended offer: $10k (12.0% below list) — sets the bar for market timing.
• Local home prices are declining (-3.0%/yr); year-one equity from $81 of loan paydown is wiped out by about $351 of value loss. Plan a longer hold.
• Location reads 81/100 on livability (#76 in IA, #1,607 nationally) — a professional / high-income tenant draw. Strengths: cost of living A+, housing A+, health & safety A+; Watch: employment C-, amenities F.
• Creston Community School District (town): math 63% / reading 69% proficiency, ranked #195 of 289 in IA (top 68%) — acceptable for families but not a draw, mixed tenant base, ~2y average lease.
• Zoned schools: Creston Elementary School (math 60% / reading 49%, grade C, #462 of 616 statewide, top 79%, 410 students, 55% FRL); Creston Middle School (math 65% / reading 74%, grade A, #113 of 246 statewide, top 49%, 291 students, 60% FRL); Creston High School (math 63% / reading 78%, grade B+, #140 of 336 statewide, top 43%, 532 students, 46% FRL).
• Watch-outs: built in 1898 — expect roof / HVAC / electrical / plumbing capex.
• Market conditions: 78 active listings in the ZIP; 5 units permitted in Union County in 2024 (0 in 5+ unit buildings).
• 2 sale attempts; this cycle's ask has dropped $3k (19%) from the opening price — seller is motivated, your offer sets the floor, not the list.
• At projected returns (-3.0% appreciation + 3.0% rent growth), your $3k cash investment doubles in ~1 year — after that, you're playing with house money.
• Cap rate 95.4% vs local median 4.6% in Creston — 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 217 days. Have you received any prior offers? Is the seller open to a 12% concession, seller financing, or rate buy-down credit?
• Built in 1898 — 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 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.