460 Jefferson Ave, Washington, PA 15301 — 29.3% Cash-on-Cash

About this property

460 Jefferson Ave is a four-bedroom, two-bath multifamily duplex listed at $160,000 in Washington, PA 15301, with two days on market.

The property is a duplex with a tenant already in place on the second floor, meaning day-one cash flow isn't hypothetical — it's contractual. The first-floor unit has been recently updated but still needs finishing work and appliances, so a buyer is acquiring one stabilized unit and one value-add unit simultaneously. That split structure is worth understanding before underwriting.

High ceilings and preserved woodwork are mentioned in the listing, which signals an older building with character construction rather than a generic rental box. Older stock in this price range often carries deferred maintenance risk, so a thorough inspection of mechanicals, roof, and foundation is warranted. The lot is 7,501 square feet, reasonable for a duplex in a mid-size Pennsylvania city.

The tax-assessed value sits at $76,300 against a $160,000 ask — a wide gap that's common in markets where assessed values lag transaction prices, but it also suggests the county hasn't reassessed recently. At two days on market, this listing is fresh. The $0 price reduction from original list price means the seller hasn't blinked yet. Figures exclude depreciation tax benefits, which vary by individual tax situation.

The investment case

Rent covers 1.7 times the total monthly payment here — an unusual margin that separates this duplex from most deals in Washington, where the city average cash-on-cash return is negative 1.0%.

List Price

$160,000

Monthly Payment (PITI+HOA)

$1,094

Principal & Interest

$873

Property Tax

$168

Insurance

$53

HOA

$0

PMI

$0

Est. Monthly Rent

$1,874

Estimated rent based on automated valuation of comparable listings.

Cash-on-Cash Return

29.3%

Cap Rate

13.7%

Monthly Cash Flow

$780

Gross Rent Multiplier

7.1

DSCR

2.1

The math starts with a $160,000 purchase price, a $1,094 total monthly payment (principal, interest, taxes, and insurance at 6.55% on a 30-year fixed), and an estimated $1,874 monthly rent. That produces $780 in monthly cash flow before capital expenditures and vacancy. The 1.7x coverage ratio isn't a rounding artifact — it's a genuine structural advantage when most Washington listings bleed cash at current rates.

The cash-on-cash return lands at 29.3%, compared to the city average of negative 1.0%. That's not a marginal outperformance; it's a category difference. The cap rate of 13.7% and a net operating income of $1,821/month reflect a property priced well below what its income would justify in a tighter market. The gross rent multiplier of 7.1 confirms the same: income-to-price compression that income investors look for.

The debt service coverage ratio of 2.1 is the lender's number, and it's strong. A DSCR above 1.25 typically clears most investment property loan thresholds; 2.1 leaves substantial room for vacancy or unexpected expense without triggering cash-flow stress.

The caveat is the first-floor unit. Until it's fully finished and leased, the $1,874 rent estimate reflects a stabilized assumption. A buyer should underwrite a lease-up period of 60 to 90 days for that unit and model the cash flow accordingly. Even with that haircut, the numbers hold up better than most alternatives in this zip code.

Annual return outlook

The five-year total ROI of 39.6% draws from three distinct sources, with cash flow doing the heaviest lifting.

Cash flow contributes 29.3 percentage points of the 39.6% five-year ROI — the dominant driver by a wide margin. Appreciation adds 3.8 percentage points, based on Washington's projected annual appreciation rate. Mortgage paydown contributes the remaining 6.5 percentage points as principal reduction builds equity passively over the hold period.

The appreciation figure comes from scraped market data for Washington, PA, not an estimate. At 3.8% annually, it's a modest but real tailwind on a $160,000 asset. Over five years, that compounds to meaningful equity, though it's clearly secondary to the income return here.

The paydown component — 6.5% — is often underweighted by investors focused on cash flow. At a $160,000 purchase price with a conventional mortgage, the principal reduction over five years is a tangible equity position that doesn't require the market to cooperate.

For this property, the investment thesis is primarily income-driven, with appreciation and paydown as supporting returns rather than the core case.

How it compares to nearby for-sale listings

Four comparable four-bedroom, two-bath listings in Washington's 15301 zip code provide a pricing anchor for this deal.

At $160,000, this duplex sits 43.9% below the for-sale comp median of $285,000 among similar four-bedroom, two-bath properties in the same zip. That discount is the starting point for understanding why the cap rate and cash-on-cash figures look the way they do — income-to-price ratios improve sharply when the purchase price is compressed relative to peers.

The comp set spans a wide range. One listing at $124,900 has been on the market for 119 days, suggesting the low end of this market has absorption challenges. The $285,000 listing has been sitting for 363 days — over a year — which is a notable signal about where ceiling pricing meets buyer resistance in this zip. The $329,900 listing is the outlier, likely reflecting either a substantially larger or substantially upgraded property.

460 Jefferson Ave at two days on market and $160,000 occupies a pricing tier that has historically moved faster than the upper comp range. The spread between this property's ask and the comp median gives a buyer room to acquire below replacement cost while the upper-tier inventory accumulates days.

Rental demand in this zip

No directly comparable four-bedroom rentals were identified in ZIP 15301 at the time of this analysis, which limits rent estimate precision.

The estimated monthly rent of $1,874 comes from automated valuation modeling rather than a matched rental comp set. With zero comparable rentals in the zip at this bedroom count, that figure carries more uncertainty than a comp-supported estimate would. Investors should treat $1,874 as a ceiling to stress-test rather than a floor to build on.

The practical implication: before closing, a buyer should canvass local property managers for current asking rents on similar units in Washington. Even a 10% reduction in rent — to roughly $1,687 — would reduce monthly cash flow from $780 to approximately $593, which still supports a positive return but changes the CoC picture meaningfully.

The listing confirms one unit is currently tenant-occupied, which provides at least a partial real-world data point. The lease rate on that unit, if disclosed during due diligence, is the most reliable single input for validating the rent assumption. The first-floor unit's lease-up rent will be the second test. Until both units are stabilized at market rents, the $1,874 aggregate estimate remains a projection.

Who this property suits + risks to weigh

This property fits an investor who wants immediate income, can handle light renovation work, and is comfortable with a secondary Pennsylvania market.

Best fit

The buyer most aligned with this deal is a small-portfolio landlord or a first-time investment property buyer who wants a cash-flowing asset without a full gut renovation. One unit is already producing rent; the other needs appliances and finishing work, not structural intervention. A buyer with basic project management experience and a local contractor relationship could stabilize the first floor within 60 to 90 days.

The 29.3% cash-on-cash return and 2.1 DSCR also make this an attractive candidate for DSCR-based financing, which evaluates the property's income rather than the borrower's W-2. That opens the deal to self-employed investors or those with complex income profiles who might not qualify for conventional investment loans.

Risks to weigh

The rent estimate lacks rental comp support in the zip code, which is the single largest underwriting risk. If the market won't bear $1,874, the cash flow projections compress. The first-floor unit's unfinished condition means carrying costs during lease-up, and appliance and finishing costs need to be budgeted explicitly — they're not reflected in the listed price.

The tax-assessed value of $76,300 against a $160,000 purchase price could trigger a reassessment in some Pennsylvania jurisdictions, potentially increasing the property tax line. The current $168/month tax estimate is based on the 1.25% effective rate; a reassessment to transaction value would push that materially higher. Older construction also warrants a reserve budget for deferred maintenance that won't show up in a surface inspection.