DEAL SHEET · W39 · SEPTEMBER 25, 2026 |
Happy Friday Roots Fam!
What a week! I returned on Tuesday from a much needed Florida vacation with my wife and son this week. It was likely our last vacation as a family of three; number four is on the way by the end of this year!
I got back just in time for our Wednesday Coffee & Connect, featuring Jon Laster. Jon shared an absolute masterclass on how to win back your life and productivity by leveraging neuroscience. My biggest takeaway that I’ll leave with you for the week: “Your brain is constantly rewiring itself through neuroplasticity, so changing what you focus on will literally change your outcomes.” For better or worse…
Now the deals this week.
I have been thinking about lease length a lot since last week, after we ran a deal whose lease happened to be up the same month we published it. It’s still a fine deal if you like the house, but it is a very different purchase than one where somebody has already committed to paying you into 2028.
Three of the four below are leased right now, and the reason I pulled these particular ones together is the long game. Leases that are in place for a good chunk of time.
Also threw in a flip deal at the bottom for fun ;)
Every leased card runs on one model: 25 percent down, a 30-year DSCR loan at 7.125 percent, 4 percent vacancy, 5 percent maintenance, 5 percent CapEx, 10 percent management, insurance at 0.6 percent, and property tax reset to Indiana's 2 percent non-homestead level. There are no cash-on-cash figures in this issue, for the reason at the bottom.
2 bed / 2 full bath · Built 1938 · Detached garage · Bean Creek · Indianapolis, IN 46203
ASKING $140,000 · it pays you $60/mo
This one is leased at $1,410 a month and the lease runs through July 2027, which is twenty two months out from today. That works out to a full 1 percent of the asking price, and of everything on the board this week it is the only one that actually puts money in your pocket while you hold it.
It was renovated top to bottom in 2022, so you are getting an updated kitchen with granite counters and newer cabinetry, both bathrooms refreshed, and updated flooring and electrical. There is a detached garage out back along with a mini barn and a storage shed, and the yard is partially fenced on a lot that will not ask much of you. Garfield Park is a few blocks away, which is an incredibly up and coming area, in my opinion.
Rent is owner-reported through the listing. We have not read the lease. Tax is modeled at the 2 percent non-homestead rate. Cash needed: $40,000.
3 bed / 1 bath · 1,255 sq ft · Roughly half an acre · Forest Manor · Indianapolis, IN 46218
ASKING $184,900 · costs you $156/mo to hold
All brick, leased at $1,550 a month, and the tenant has been in place at least four years paying on time the whole way through. They cover all the utilities as well.
The systems are in reasonable shape for a house this age. Roof is eight to ten years old, furnace and air conditioning somewhere around eight, and both the water heater and the flooring are three. It has needed about three maintenance calls in the past year and nothing has turned up on the plumbing or the electrical.
What I keep coming back to on this one is the lot. It is roughly half an acre, which you almost never get at this price point. The listing also mentions that five to ten thousand in improvements would support a higher rent. It does not say how much higher, so I have left that out of the numbers entirely.
Rent is owner-reported through the listing. We have not read the lease. Tax is modeled at the 2 percent non-homestead rate. Cash needed: $51,225.
PARTNER · LONGHORN INVESTMENTS At Longhorn Investments, we provide financing for fix-and-flip, fix-and-rent, and new construction investment properties through a lending process that’s transparent, responsive, and built around real estate investors. Our 100% LTC financing provides qualified borrowers with access to up to 100% of their purchase and rehab costs, giving investors a powerful financing advantage while preserving more of their capital for future opportunities. Every borrower and every loan is treated like our first, and we work hard to earn your trust by delivering a reliable, professional lending experience from start to finish.
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3 bed / 1 bath · 768 sq ft · Brick on a slab · Near northeast side · Indianapolis, IN 46218
ASKING $119,900 · costs you $223/mo to hold
This is the one I was talking about at the top. It is leased through October 2028 at $845 a month, and the lease has contractual increases of two to three percent a year written into the term. That is four years of income somebody has already agreed to pay, which is not something I get to put in front of you very often.
The current tenants have been in the house six or seven years, so this is not a brand new lease with somebody nobody knows yet. It is brick on a slab, which keeps the maintenance quiet. Air conditioning is about five years old, water heater four, the roof is ten or more, and the tenants pay all the utilities.
The annual tax bill is $976, the lowest of anything in this portfolio. I am still modeling tax at Indiana's 2 percent non-homestead rate, because that $976 is not going to survive the sale and I would rather show you the number you are actually going to pay.
Rent and lease term are owner-reported through the listing. We have not read the lease. Cash needed: $34,975.
PARTNER · HAUS CONSTRUCTION Haus Construction handles everything from routine maintenance and inspection responses to general contracting, roofing, exterior work, and full renovations. Making it easy for homeowners, investors, and property managers to have one trusted team for the job.
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80 S 5th Avenue, |
It listed Tuesday, a block off Main Street in Beech Grove. I will tell you straight that the photo looks better than the project does, because all of the work here is interior. And I am not printing a profit number: the $220,000 ARV is the listing's estimate, nobody has published a rehab budget, so that gap is a spread and not a profit. Get a contractor through it.
No rent, no carry and no BiggerPockets report here, because the rental model does not apply to a vacant project. The ARV is the listing's estimate, not ours.
PARTNER · CORE INSURANCE SOLUTIONS Jackson Blevins founded Core Insurance Solutions, an independent agency downtown. He's incredibly down to earth and great at what he does. Contact: Jackson · 317-358-6780 · jblevins@coreinsurancesolns.com · coreinsurancesolns.com
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On the Calendar
Indy Street Sweep, Saturday October 17. Willard Park. Grab a bag.
Coffee and Connect returns Wednesday October 21. Details here.
Real Estate Masterclass, December 3, Guggman Haus. First 50 registrations are free. Details here.
That’s the week! If you made it this far, seriously thank you. Roots is grateful for people like you in our community who take real estate seriously.
In conclusion, we gave you four properties this week, three of them leased and one intentionally empty to flip.
If you want us to run the numbers on a property before you buy it, reply to this email!
Plant roots, build wealth.
Max
P.S. Bought something in Indy in the last twelve months? Reply WIN with the address and what it collects. We print one a week, first name only, and you can tell us to leave the number out.
This model is a comparison tool, not a property budget. It excludes utilities, turnover, legal use, furnishing replacement, debt-service lender fees, and property-specific capital work. It also does not assume appreciation. Read the lease, verify the operating statements, inspect the property, and confirm financing before making a decision.
