Roots Fam 🌱, Indianapolis just hosted the Final Four and National Championship. Let that sink in for a second. One of the biggest sporting events in college sports — 80,000 fans, national TV, every hotel sold out, every restaurant on a wait — descended on our city. Not Chicago. Not New York. Indy. The so-called flyover state just flew over everybody. I’ve been saying it for years: this city is not what people think it is. And this week proved it on a national stage. When the eyes of the country were watching, Indianapolis showed up. That’s the city you’re investing in. That’s the market you’re betting on. And honestly? It’s the perfect backdrop for this week’s newsletter — because the story I want to share with you is the same story Indy is writing for itself. You start where you are. You bet on yourself before anyone else does. And you build. Which brings me to Ryan Boyd. |
Ryan was a broke musician with no college degree who sold his Apple stock to buy a $65,000 duplex in Garfield Park. That was his entire playbook — one property, one bet on himself. Today he runs a real estate portfolio, a construction company, and a private lending firm. He’s a top-10 agent. That original duplex? Still his best deal — $1,250 a unit, every single month. We sat down with Ryan on the Roots Podcast this week, and I want you to watch this episode before you do anything else. He breaks down exactly how he built his empire — house hacking, delayed gratification, building “unicorn” properties — and the strategies he shares are things you can start with $50,000 or less. |
📊 Indianapolis Market — Spring 2026 Here’s where things stand on the ground in Indy right now: Home Prices • Average home value: $223,697 — up 1% year-over-year. Homes going pending in roughly 7 days when priced right. (Zillow) • Median listing price: $317,000 — up 5.5% year-over-year. • Forecasted appreciation: 3–4.5% for the rest of 2026, median projected to hit $268K–$272K. National Rankings • Zillow ranked Indianapolis #1 most buyer-friendly market in 2026 among the 50 largest U.S. metros. • NAR ranked Indianapolis #4 on its top homebuying hotspots list — strong job growth, millennial demand, rising inventory. Inventory & Pace • Active inventory: 6,000+ homes on market — up 20–30% from 2025. • Days on market: 55 days average. Correctly priced homes still move fast. Overpriced homes are sitting. Rates • 30-year fixed hovering near 6.3% in 2026 per Realtor.com and Redfin. Max’s take: More inventory, slower competition, motivated sellers — that’s the investor’s window. The buyers who act in this environment are the ones who look back in five years and say they got lucky. They weren’t lucky. They were ready. |
Every week, my team and I scan the Indianapolis MLS, our off-market network, and our partners’ deal lists to find the best investment opportunities in the city. We run the numbers, model the cash flow, and bring you the ones worth your attention. The historic deal database lives in our Deal Send Sheet — a running spreadsheet of every deal we’ve analyzed since we started this newsletter. Reply to this email if you want access. This week: 3 featured deals, 3 medium deals, and a full bonus section. Let’s get into it. |
⭐ Featured Deal 2008–2012 E Washington St, Indianapolis, IN Commercial — 16 Units, 2 Buildings
Why Max likes this This is the deal that changes your portfolio trajectory. Sixteen doors. Two buildings side by side on E Washington. Institutional-level returns at 8% cash-on-cash and nearly an 8% cap rate — numbers you rarely find in Indy at any price point, let alone at scale. This one isn’t on Zillow or the MLS. It came through our off-market network and it won’t last. If you’re serious about scale, reply directly to this email and I’ll connect you with everything you need.
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⭐ Featured Deal 1440 Herschell Ave, Indianapolis, IN Single Family — Vacant, Move-In Ready
Why Max likes this Under $25,000 to get in the door. That is the headline. A $1,425 rent on a $115,000 purchase price is one of the strongest rent-to-price ratios you’ll find in Indianapolis right now. It’s vacant — you control tenant selection from day one, close clean, no drama. 8.52% cash-on-cash with a 21% five-year annualized return. If you’ve been waiting to buy your first rental, this is the one.
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⭐ Featured Deal 537 E 11th St, Indianapolis, IN 46202 Multifamily — A-Class
Why Max likes this This deal is not for the person chasing monthly checks. It’s for the investor who thinks in years, not months. At 7% rates, you’re essentially breaking even on an A-class multifamily in one of the most appreciating submarkets in Indianapolis — while paying down a $559,920 loan with someone else’s rent. When rates drop and you refi, this deal’s cash flow story completely changes. Buy the asset now. Improve the economics later.
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Our Partners Resolute Lending Competitive rates for Indianapolis investors. From conventional rentals to commercial deals — fast closes, local relationships, investor-friendly financing. Tell them Roots sent you.
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1222 N Gale St, Indianapolis, IN Near Eastside single-family is generating income on day one with a lease in place through June 2026. Minutes from downtown Indianapolis and Brookside Park, this is a straightforward add to any rental portfolio with no work required. |
1211 N Gale St, Indianapolis, IN This 2-bed/1-bath home has been updated with newer mechanicals and roof - the big ticket items are already done. Lease runs through March 2027, giving the next owner over a year of guaranteed income with zero work required. |
1909 Union St, Indianapolis, IN This Old Southside single-family is generating income on day one with a lease in place through November 2026. Located just minutes from downtown Indianapolis, this is a low entry point at $129,900! |
Property Management We Manage Rentals. So You Don't Have To. Roots PM Co provides full-service property management for Indianapolis investors — tenant placement, rent collection, maintenance coordination, and monthly reporting. If you own a rental or you're about to buy one, we should talk. → Reply directly to this email to learn more. |
Bonus Deals — More to Explore Max's Rent-by-Room Portfolio
Duplexes
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☕ Coffee & Connect with Roots — Tuesday, April 15, 2026 |
No pitch decks. No sales presentations. Just real conversations about Indianapolis real estate over good coffee. This month's guest speaker is Josh Wagner — founder of Emberbloom Coaching & Consulting and a certified coach in the globally recognized Scaling Up framework. Josh works with real estate and construction leaders who've hit the founder bottleneck — the stage where the business is growing but everything still runs through you. He blends rigorous business frameworks with deep leadership psychology, and this will be the most actionable hour of learning you get in April.
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Thinking about the suburbs? We did a full breakdown of the 8 best Indianapolis suburbs for 2026 on the Roots Podcast — and the results might surprise you. Whitestown has quadrupled in size in 15 years and is still one of the most affordable options in the state. Danville has land subdivision plays where you can essentially build your own lot for free. Monrovia, Westfield, McCordsville — there are opportunities everywhere once you know where to look. |
That’s the week, Roots Fam. More inventory, slower competition, motivated sellers — and a city that just showed the whole country what it’s made of. The conditions are right. The deals are here. The only question is whether you’re ready to move. See you Thursday. Keep building, — Max Moore Roots Realty | Indianapolis |
P.S. — If you forward this to one person who should be investing in real estate, I will personally thank you in the form of a really solid handshake. That’s my best offer. |
