15 Montour St, Canonsburg, PA 15317 — 33.0% Cash-on-Cash

About this property

15 Montour St is a six-bedroom, two-bath single-family property on a 0.673-acre lot in Canonsburg, PA, currently listed at $200,000 after a $14,900 price reduction.

The property sits at the end of a dead-end street, which limits drive-by traffic and tends to reduce tenant turnover friction — a practical detail that doesn't show up in the financials but matters for landlord quality of life. The listing notes a brand-new roof and siding, plus newly installed French drains and wall anchors, meaning the major capital expenditure items a buyer would normally budget for in the first few years have already been addressed.

Inside, the 2,195 square feet is organized around six bedrooms — unusually flexible for a property at this price point. Wood ceilings and accent walls give it enough character that it won't feel like a generic rental to prospective tenants. A new large deck adds outdoor living space that photographs well and supports premium rent positioning.

The property is classified as non-owner occupied in public records, which signals it has been used as an income property before. At 132 days on market — well above typical absorption in this price range — the extended listing period is worth watching. The $14,900 price reduction suggests the seller has already adjusted expectations once. Tax-assessed value sits at $115,900, roughly 58 cents on the dollar relative to the current ask, which is a meaningful gap but not unusual in markets where assessed values lag.

The investment case

At a 33.0% cash-on-cash return against a city average of -1.0%, this property isn't just outperforming its market — it's operating in a different category entirely.

List Price

$200,000

Monthly Payment (PITI+HOA)

$1,315

Principal & Interest

$1,038

Property Tax

$210

Insurance

$67

HOA

$0

PMI

$0

Est. Monthly Rent

$2,416

Estimated rent based on automated valuation of comparable listings.

Cash-on-Cash Return

33.0%

Cap Rate

14.1%

Monthly Cash Flow

$1,101

Gross Rent Multiplier

6.9

DSCR

2.3

The headline metrics are hard to dismiss. A $200,000 purchase at 20% down ($40,000) produces a total monthly payment of $1,315, broken down as $1,038 principal and interest at the current 6.55% 30-year fixed rate, $210 in property taxes, and $67 in insurance. Against an estimated monthly rent of $2,416, that leaves $1,101 in monthly cash flow before maintenance reserves — $13,212 annualized.

The cap rate of 14.1% is the more durable metric here, since it strips out financing. Net operating income of $2,349 per month on a $200,000 asset is a ratio that's genuinely rare in a market where the city median listing price is $310,000. A debt service coverage ratio of 2.3 means the property generates more than twice its debt obligation each month — a buffer that absorbs vacancy or unexpected repairs without immediately going cash-flow negative.

The gross rent multiplier of 6.9 reinforces the value framing. At the city median price of $310,000, a buyer would need substantially higher rents to hit comparable GRM figures. This property's price is 35% below that median while the bedroom count matches or exceeds most of the competition.

Canonsburg's city-wide cash-on-cash average is -1.0%, meaning the typical deal here loses money on a monthly basis after financing. The tenth-best deal in the city's top leaderboard clocks in at 29.13% CoC — and this property clears that bar by nearly four percentage points. Figures exclude depreciation tax benefits, which vary by individual tax situation.

For a cash-flow-focused buyer, the financing math here is unusually favorable given the price point and the local competitive set.

Annual return outlook

The 41.8% total five-year ROI is built on three distinct components, with cash flow doing most of the work.

Cash flow contributes 33.0 percentage points of the 41.8% total — the dominant driver by a wide margin. Mortgage paydown adds 4.9 points as the loan balance amortizes. Appreciation contributes 3.8 points annually, based on Canonsburg's projected appreciation rate of 3.8%.

That appreciation figure is cited as fact from current market data. On a $200,000 asset, 3.8% annual appreciation compounds to roughly $40,700 in added value over five years — meaningful, but not the reason to buy this property. The cash flow case stands on its own without leaning on price appreciation.

The balance between these components matters for investor planning. A deal where appreciation carries the bulk of returns requires the market to cooperate. Here, cash flow alone justifies the acquisition — appreciation and paydown are genuine upside rather than load-bearing assumptions. If Canonsburg's appreciation rate underperforms, the investment thesis doesn't collapse; it just earns less than projected.

Mortgage paydown at 4.9% reflects early-period amortization on a 30-year note at 6.55%. It's the smallest of the three components but accelerates as the loan seasons, building equity that a future sale or cash-out refinance can capture.

The five-year picture is unusually robust because cash flow — the most predictable component — is doing the heavy lifting, not appreciation assumptions.

How it compares to nearby for-sale listings

Three active six-bedroom listings in ZIP 15317 provide a limited but telling price context for this property.

At $200,000, this property sits dramatically below the for-sale comp median of $1,975,000 in the same zip and bedroom count. That gap is large enough to require explanation rather than simple comparison. The two listings at $1,975,000 are 5,000-square-foot properties — more than twice the size of 15 Montour St — which explains much of the price differential on a per-square-foot basis. The third comp at $319,000 for a six-bedroom, four-bath property is the more relevant reference point, and even against that benchmark, 15 Montour St is priced 37% lower with two fewer bathrooms and roughly comparable square footage implied by the listing.

The 132 days on market here compares unfavorably to the 48-day listing at $319,000 and the 72-day listings at $1,975,000. Extended time on market at this price level typically signals either condition concerns, a buyer financing gap, or price anchoring by the seller — and the $14,900 reduction suggests the seller has already responded to market feedback once.

For an investor, the low price relative to comps can be an opportunity or a signal. The non-owner-occupied classification and the structural updates documented in the listing (wall anchors, French drains) suggest the property has had some deferred maintenance history that's now been partially addressed. The tax-assessed value of $115,900 adds another data point: this property has been valued well below its current ask by the county for some time.

Rental demand in this zip

Rental comp data for six-bedroom units in ZIP 15317 is effectively absent, which is the single largest uncertainty in this deal's income projection.

There are zero comparable rentals in ZIP 15317 with six bedrooms on record. The estimated monthly rent of $2,416 is not supported by a local comp set — it's a modeled figure, and investors should treat it accordingly. That doesn't make the number wrong, but it does mean the confidence interval is wider than it would be with five or ten active comps to anchor against.

Six-bedroom rentals are a niche product. The tenant pool is smaller than for two- or three-bedroom units, but the demand that exists tends to be specific and sticky: large families, group housing arrangements, or professional house-share situations. These tenants are harder to find but often stay longer once placed, which reduces turnover costs.

The $2,416 estimate works out to roughly $402 per bedroom per month — a figure that's plausible for the Canonsburg market if the property is positioned as a group rental or large-family home. The new deck, the quiet dead-end location, and the updated exterior all support rent positioning at or near that level. The two bathrooms for six bedrooms is the most obvious friction point — it's a configuration that limits appeal for certain tenant profiles and may require pricing concessions relative to the modeled rent.

Investors should budget for a longer lease-up period and consider stress-testing the cash flow at $1,900-$2,100/month to understand the downside scenario before closing.

Who this property suits + risks to weigh

This property fits a cash-flow-first investor comfortable with a niche rental product and willing to do active tenant management on a six-bedroom unit.

Best fit

The investor profile here is someone prioritizing monthly income over appreciation, with enough liquidity to absorb a slower lease-up given the absence of local rental comps. At 33% CoC — the highest in ZIP 15317 and well above the city's top-10 threshold of 29.13% — the property rewards buyers who can execute on the leasing side. A landlord with experience managing larger households or group rentals will extract more value here than someone accustomed to standard two- or three-bedroom units.

The $40,000 down payment (20% of $200,000) is a relatively low capital commitment for a deal generating over $13,000 in projected annual cash flow. That capital efficiency suits investors building a portfolio rather than concentrating in a single high-priced asset.

Risks to weigh

The 132-day market time is the most visible risk signal. A property that hasn't sold in over four months at a price well below comparable listings warrants a thorough inspection, particularly given the structural work (wall anchors, French drains) disclosed in the listing. Those updates suggest a prior water or foundation issue was identified and addressed — buyers should verify the scope and quality of that work independently.

The two-bathroom configuration for six bedrooms is a functional constraint that will narrow the tenant pool and could pressure achievable rent below the $2,416 estimate. The absence of rental comps means there's no market-tested floor to reference. A vacancy period of even two to three months would materially affect first-year returns, though the DSCR of 2.3 provides enough buffer that the property wouldn't go cash-flow negative during a short vacancy.

The tax-assessed value of $115,900 versus a $200,000 ask is worth monitoring — if a reassessment follows the sale, property tax obligations could increase from the current $210/month estimate.