544 N Meridian St

Winchester, IN 47394

$109,900D

2 bd · 1.0 ba · 916 sqft · Built 1900 · SingleFamily · Active · 81 DOM

Cashflow @ list (25.0% down · 7.5%)

• Estimated rent: $882/mo
• Mortgage (P&I): −$576
• Tax + insurance: −$70
• HOA: −$0
• Vac / Maint / Mgmt: −$185
• Net cashflow: $50/mo
• Annual: $600/yr
• Cap rate: 6.84%
• Cash-on-cash: 1.95%
• DSCR: 1.09
• 1% rule: 0.80%
• Cash to close: $30,772

Investor read

• This is a 2-bed/1.0-bath single-family listed at $110k.
• At list price, monthly cash flow is $50 ($600/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 $88k (19.8% below list).
• It's been on market 81 days — a 6% lower offer ($103k) is reasonable based on typical stale-listing flexibility.
• Recommended offer: $88k (19.8% below list) — sets the bar for 1% rule.
• In year one you build about $12k of equity ($760 loan paydown + $11k appreciation (10.0% local appreciation)).
• Location reads 67/100 on livability (#240 in IN) — a middle-class / working-renter tenant base. Strengths: cost of living A+, housing A+, crime B; Watch: health & safety D, amenities F, commute F.
• Randolph Central School Corporation (town): math 32% / reading 37% proficiency, ranked #201 of 301 in IN (top 67%) — families likely to look elsewhere, expect single-tenant / working-renter base with shorter leases.
• Zoned schools: O R Baker Elementary School (338 students, 57% FRL); Lee L Driver Middle School (math 27% / reading 33%, grade F, #208 of 330 statewide, top 64%, 291 students, 56% FRL); Winchester Community High School (math 17% / reading 47%, grade F, #295 of 369 statewide, top 82%, 414 students, 47% FRL).
• Watch-outs: built in 1900 — expect roof / HVAC / electrical / plumbing capex.
• Market conditions: 52 active listings in the ZIP; 19 units permitted in Randolph County in 2024 (0 in 5+ unit buildings).
• Randolph County population projected at -26% by 2050 — secular population decline; favor cash flow + early exit over multi-decade hold.
• At projected returns (10.0% appreciation + 3.0% rent growth), your $31k cash investment doubles in ~3 years — after that, you're playing with house money.
• By year 4, paydown + projected appreciation supports a ~$42k cash-out refi (75% LTV) — recoverable capital for the next deal without selling this one.
• Cap rate 6.8% vs local median 5.1% in Winchester — 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 81 days. Have you received any prior offers? Is the seller open to a 20% concession, seller financing, or rate buy-down credit?
• Built in 1900 — 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.