Deal Closed: My Latest Rental Property

In partnership with

I just closed on a new property, and I thought I’d share the play-by-play of how it unfolded.

Finding the Opportunity

I first noticed this house while helping my brother-in-law move. The “for sale” sign went up, and then down just as quickly. Pretty typical for this post-Covid market.

A few months later, it popped up for sale again. A flip?

Curious, I checked Zillow. It had been listed for only 8 days, and the seller had already dropped the price by $10K.

I smelled blood in the water. This was likely a motivated seller.. And the best time to negotiate is when the seller needs cash fast.

So I scheduled a viewing.

A Failed Flip = My Win

After digging a little deeper in the government records, I discovered the seller had tried a quick flip—fresh paint, a few touch-ups, and done. But in Westland, every home sale requires a certificate of occupancy, which means passing city inspection.

They failed. Twice.

The city forced them to bring the house up to proper standards, which meant sinking real money into improvements:

• Brand new roof

• New HVAC system

• Modernized bathroom

• Safety compliance across the board

For me, that was a gift. These capital expenditures were already done, which reduced my long-term maintenance risk and made my underwriting far more attractive.

It also explained the seller’s motivation: they had sunk more money into the property than planned and needed to get it back.

My Competitive Advantage

Finding a motivated seller is only half the equation. The other half is competing buyers.

But… there weren’t any.

I talked it over with my partner, and what puzzled me was obvious to her: no basement.

Most homebuyers see that as a dealbreaker. A basement makes a house feel like a “forever home.” Without one, buyers move on.

But as a rental? It’s a non-issue. Tenants aren’t looking for permanence — they want “good for now” while they save for their forever home.

That meant I wasn’t competing with typical homebuyers. Only with other investors — and that’s a smaller pool.

My Investment Thesis

The property is in Westland, a city with a rough reputation (poor schools, higher crime, etc.).

But reputations evolve. Over the long term, prices here are likely to climb. Young families priced out of A neighborhoods will push into B communities.

Why? Their dollar goes further. When budgets are tight, most people prefer an A-property in a B-neighborhood over a B-property in an A-neighborhood.

That dynamic drives gentrification, higher values, and stronger demand.

So I’m not just expecting this property to rent well now — I’m expecting it to appreciate over time.

For you math nerds like me, here are my final Big 3 Numbers based on the mortgage:

• Cap rate: 9.13%

• Cash-on-cash return: 8.6%

• Total return: 17.56%

The Risks I’m Managing

The biggest challenge with this deal is timing. I closed in mid-September, which is the tail end of the peak rental season (April–September). That creates two risks:

1. Lower tenant quality – I might have to relax my standards to get someone in before winter.

2. Vacancy risk – Holding the property empty until April if I can’t find the right tenant.

Both come with trade-offs, but given the upgrades, location, and long-term trajectory of the area, I’m confident this one will work out in the long-run.

Takeaway

This deal came together because:

• I spotted a motivated seller

• The property had no competition from homebuyers

• The numbers worked thanks to forced upgrades

Sometimes a property isn’t a dream home—but it’s the perfect rental.

Feedback

Enjoyed this breakdown? I’d love to hear what you want me to cover next — just reply, I read them all :)

And if this newsletter gave you something useful, pass it along to a friend who might appreciate it too.

This Week’s Affiliates

Beat the market before breakfast.

Join 100,000+ readers who get smarter about stocks, crypto, and income in 5 minutes flat with our free daily newsletter.

Stocks And Income is 100% free and focused on helping you find investment opportunities that outperform the market average.

No hype, no fluff, just real signals and strategy.

Did you miss these big winners?

✅ CoreWeave (before it soared 209%)
✅ Palantir (+441% this year)

Our readers didn’t.

Get the next big stock and crypto picks delivered daily.

Subscribe for free

_{Stocks & Income is for informational purposes only and is not intended to be used as investment advice. Do your own research.}

Run ads IRL with AdQuick

With AdQuick, you can now easily plan, deploy and measure campaigns just as easily as digital ads, making them a no-brainer to add to your team’s toolbox.

You can learn more at www.AdQuick.com