965 Ancestra Dr

Fountain, CO 80817

$335,000D+

5 bd · 4.0 ba · 2,865 sqft · Built 1999 · SingleFamily · Active · 65 DOM

Cashflow @ list (25.0% down · 7.5%)

• Estimated rent: $2,765/mo
• Mortgage (P&I): −$1,757
• Tax + insurance: −$294
• HOA: −$0
• Vac / Maint / Mgmt: −$581
• Net cashflow: $133/mo
• Annual: $1,601/yr
• Cap rate: 6.77%
• Cash-on-cash: 1.71%
• DSCR: 1.08
• 1% rule: 0.83%
• Cash to close: $93,800

Investor read

• This is a 5-bed/4.0-bath single-family listed at $335k.
• At list price, monthly cash flow is $133 ($2k/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 $277k (17.4% below list).
• It's been on market 65 days — a 6% lower offer ($315k) is reasonable based on typical stale-listing flexibility.
• Recommended offer: $277k (17.4% 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 $10k of value loss. Plan a longer hold.
• Location reads 58/100 on livability (#300 in CO) — a working-class tenant base; expect higher turnover. Strengths: housing A+; Watch: cost of living C-, crime D-, amenities F.
• Fountain School District No. 8 In The County Of El Paso An (suburban): math 22% / reading 41% proficiency, ranked #47 of 86 in CO (top 55%) — families likely to look elsewhere, expect single-tenant / working-renter base with shorter leases.
• Zoned schools: Mesa Elementary School (math 24% / reading 37%, grade F, #502 of 966 statewide, top 52%, 645 students, 40% FRL); Fountain Middle School (math 15% / reading 31%, grade F, #184 of 270 statewide, top 68%, 1,046 students, 43% FRL); Fountain-Fort Carson High School (math 27% / reading 54%, grade F, #164 of 381 statewide, top 43%, 2,040 students, 36% FRL).
• Market conditions: Rents rising (+2.6%/yr); 235 active listings in the ZIP; 8 comparable units currently listed for rent nearby; rentals at typical pace (median 17d on market — plan ~3-4 weeks tenant-placement turnaround); solid renter incomes; 3,906 units permitted in El Paso County in 2024 (872 in 5+ unit buildings).
• El Paso County population projected at +28% by 2050 — long-run rental-demand tailwind backs the buy-and-hold thesis.
• 3 sale attempts 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.
• Climate carrying-cost: major wildfire risk — expect insurance premiums to compound above CPI over the hold.
• Cap rate 6.8% vs local median 4.3% in Fountain — 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.
• This rent runs 38% of the median local income ($87k/yr) — at the standard rent-burdened threshold; future hikes will face affordability resistance.

Questions for listing agent

• It's been on market 65 days. Have you received any prior offers? Is the seller open to a 17% concession, seller financing, or rate buy-down credit?
• 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?
• Crime grade is D in this area — have there been break-ins, vandalism, or insurance claims at this property in the last 3 years? What carrier currently insures it and at what premium?
• 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.