479 Northboro Rd West, Unit 02
479 Northboro Rd West, Unit 02, Marlborough, MA 01752·Condominium — Townhouse·Built 1986·2,212 sf
Disqualified on a closer read: listing discloses "owner occupants only."
Pass — owner-occupant restriction disclosed on MLS
The listing discloses "Owner occupants only," which blocks the rental strategy this screen exists to find regardless of price or financing. Underwriting below is retained for the record, but the restriction — not the DSCR math — is why this is a pass. Confirm with the listing agent whether it is a seller preference (negotiable) or an association bylaw (not) before writing this off entirely.
The numbers at a glance
Purchase price
$498,000
At list
Investors bring
$355,406
incl. $35,541 sponsor co-invest
Loan applied for
$181,178
36% LTV · 8% DSCR
Minimum investment
$50,000
5-year target hold
Stabilized NOI
$11,272
2.26% cap on price
Stabilized DSCR
0.71x
Lender requires 1.15x
Projected equity multiple
0.12x
over 5 years
Projected investor IRR
-34.7%
0.0% avg cash-on-cash
1% rule
0.54%monthly rent ÷ price
Investors typically want 1.00% or better. Gross rent multiple 15.6x.
Breakeven occupancy
110%
Above 100% — the property cannot cover expenses and debt even fully leased.
Reserve adequacy
Short
$15,000 budgeted against $22,938 of projected operating shortfall.
The thesis
Second-cheapest of the batch by gross yield (6.4% on the town-average rent estimate) — but a direct MLS pull surfaced a disclosure the alert digest never showed: "Owner occupants only." That is a likely disqualifier for a rental strategy independent of the underwriting below, and the reason this is a pass.
For the record, the numbers don’t clear either: at an estimated $2,668/mo and the real $375/mo condo fee, it prices to a 0.78x lender DSCR (0.52x investor test) and −10.9% cash-on-cash at 25% down. Included here because finding this kind of restriction on a closer read — after a screen looked promising — is exactly the failure mode worth publishing.
The full underwriting
Sources & uses
Every dollar going in, and where it comes from. Investor equity is the balancing figure — it is what is left after the loan.
| Use of funds | Amount | Basis |
|---|---|---|
| Purchase price | $498,000 | — |
| Closing costs, title & transfer | $10,000 | ~2.0% of purchase price |
| Operating & capital reserve | $15,000 | ~6 months of debt service and operating shortfall |
| Loan origination | $3,624 | 2.0% of loan |
| Acquisition fee (sponsor) | $9,960 | 2.0% of purchase price |
| Total capitalization | $536,584 | |
| Source of funds | Amount | Share |
| Senior debtDSCR · 8% · 30-yr am | $181,178 | 36.4% LTV · 33.8% LTC |
| Investor (LP) equity | $319,865 | 59.6% of capitalization |
| Sponsor co-investmentskin in the game | $35,541 | 10% of equity |
| Total sources | $536,584 |
Investors bring $355,406 to the table — of which $35,541 is the sponsor's own money. Minimum investment is $50,000, so this raise is roughly 7 investors at the minimum.
Rent roll & rent estimate
In-place rent is what the tenants pay today. Market rent is our estimate once the unit is turned and repriced — the gap is the whole business plan.
| Unit | Beds / baths | In-place | Market est. | Lift | Lease |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Whole unit~2,212 sf | 2 bd / 1.5 ba | $0 | $2,668 | +$2,668 | Tenant at will |
| Total / month | $0 | $2,668 | +$2,668 | ||
| Total / year | $0 | $32,016 | +$32,016 |
Whole unit: Market rent is Marlborough’s Zillow ZORI typical rent (town-wide average), not a comp pulled for this specific unit — directional only.
Stabilized operating statement
Year 2 — the first full year at market rents, in today's dollars. No rent growth is borrowed to make this year look better.
| Gross potential rent | $32,016 | All units at estimated market rent |
| Vacancy & credit loss | ($1,601) | 5% of GPR |
| Effective gross income | $30,415 | |
| Property taxes | ($5,044) | Actual FY2025 tax bill, MLS #73559966 (Assessed $496,700). |
| Insurance | ($2,565) | MA statewide-typical 0.5% of price. No landlord policy quote obtained. |
| Condo fee | ($4,635) | Actual: $375/mo, includes master insurance, exterior maintenance, landscaping, snow and trash. Elm Ridge, 28 units. |
| Repairs & maintenance | ($2,561) | — |
| Capital reserve | ($1,601) | — |
| Property management | ($2,433) | 8.0% of EGI |
| Asset management fee (sponsor) | ($304) | 1.0% of EGI |
| Total operating expenses | ($19,143) | 62.9% of EGI |
| Net operating income | $11,272 | 2.26% cap on purchase price |
5-year cash flow projection
Rent grows 3% a year from year 3; expenses grow 3%. Negative cash flow means the deal is consuming reserves, not paying investors.
| Year | EGI | Op. expenses | NOI | Debt service | Cash flow | DSCR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year 1 | $27,881 | ($18,211) | $9,669 | ($15,953) | ($6,284) | 0.61x |
| Year 2 | $30,415 | ($19,143) | $11,272 | ($15,953) | ($4,681) | 0.71x |
| Year 3 | $31,328 | ($19,717) | $11,610 | ($15,953) | ($4,343) | 0.73x |
| Year 4 | $32,267 | ($20,309) | $11,959 | ($15,953) | ($3,994) | 0.75x |
| Year 5 | $33,236 | ($20,918) | $12,317 | ($15,953) | ($3,636) | 0.77x |
Exit assumptions — year 5
Sale priced by capitalizing year 6 NOI at a 5.5% cap rate.
| Forward NOI (year 6) | $12,687 |
| Gross sale priceat 5.5% exit cap | $230,671 |
| Cost of sale | ($13,840) |
| Disposition fee (sponsor) | ($2,307) |
| Loan payoff | ($172,246) |
| Net proceeds to partnership | $42,278 |
Distribution waterfall
8% preferred return to investors first (accrues if unpaid), then 70% / 30% investor / sponsor on everything above it.
| Year | Cash available | Pref due | Pref paid | Unpaid pref carried | To investors | To sponsor |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year 1 | $0 | $28,432 | $0 | $28,432 | $0 | $0 |
| Year 2 | $0 | $56,865 | $0 | $56,865 | $0 | $0 |
| Year 3 | $0 | $85,297 | $0 | $85,297 | $0 | $0 |
| Year 4 | $0 | $113,730 | $0 | $113,730 | $0 | $0 |
| Year 5 | $0 | $142,162 | $0 | $142,162 | $0 | $0 |
| Exit | $42,278 | $0 | $38,050 | $4,228 |
Investor capital in
$319,865
Total distributions
$38,050
Equity multiple / IRR
0.12x-34.7%
How fees are charged and distributed
Every form of sponsor compensation on this deal. If it is charged, it is on this table.
| Fee | Rate | On this deal | When | Paid out of |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Acquisition fee | 2.0% of purchase price | $9,960 | Once, at closing | The equity raise — it is a line item in sources & uses above. |
| Asset management fee | 1.0% of effective gross income | $1,551 over the hold* | Annually, while we own it | Operating revenue, before cash flow reaches investors. It is inside NOI, not a separate charge. |
| Disposition fee | 1.0% of gross sale price | $2,307 | Once, at sale | Sale proceeds, before the loan is repaid and capital is returned. |
| Promote / carried interest | 30% of profits above the 8% preferred return | Nothing on this underwriting | Only after investors receive their pref | Profit only. If the deal never clears the preferred return, this pays nothing. |
| Property management | 8.0% of effective gross income | Third party | Monthly | Operating revenue. This goes to a third-party manager, not to the sponsor. |
Sponsor co-investment. We put $35,541 of our own capital in alongside you — 10% of the equity. Our co-invest sits in the same position as yours and earns the same preferred return; it is not a separate class.
Order of payment. Operating cash flow pays the 8% preferred return first. If there is not enough cash in a given year, the shortfall accrues and must be paid before the sponsor sees any profit split. At sale, proceeds repay capital, then accrued preferred return, then split 70% / 30%.
* Asset management total is the modelled figure across the 5-year hold and moves with actual revenue. Fee figures shown here are calculated from this deal's underwriting and are illustrative; the operating agreement and private placement memorandum govern in all cases.
What would have to change
The price this property actually supports
Max price at 1.15x DSCR
$305,981
$192,019 below the $498,000 we underwrote — a 39% reduction, holding leverage constant.
Max loan at this price
$111,319
Against the $181,178 contemplated. Financing the gap with equity pushes the raise to roughly $425,264 and kills the return.
Assessed value
$496,700
Town assessment for 2025. Not an appraisal, but a useful sanity check against the ask.
This is the number that turns a pro-forma into a bidding instruction. We would rather show you the price at which we would buy this building than dress up the price at which we would not.
Risks, and what we would do about them
Written before the deal is funded, not after something goes wrong.
Listing discloses "Owner occupants only"
high severityMLS #73559966 disclosures state the unit is owner-occupant-only — a rental restriction from the seller, the association, or both (unconfirmed which). If it is an association rule, it survives the sale and blocks the rental strategy outright. This alone is likely enough to pass regardless of the numbers below; confirm the source and permanence of the restriction with the listing agent before spending more diligence time here.
Market rent is a town-wide average, not a comp for this unit
high severityPull 3–5 comparable rented 2-bed Marlborough condos before underwriting further — moot if the occupancy restriction holds.
Insurance is a statewide-typical estimate
medium severityPull a real landlord-policy quote; tax and condo-fee figures below are actuals.
Sourced from a buyer-alert digest plus one MLS pull, not a showing
medium severityNo interior condition beyond listing photos and remarks; a showing comes before any offer.
Property detail
- Address
- 479 Northboro Rd West, Unit 02, Marlborough, MA 01752
- County
- Middlesex
- Type
- Condominium — Townhouse
- Units
- 1
- Year built
- 1986
- Living area
- 2,212 sf
- Lot
- —
- Parking
- —
- MLS #
- 73559966
- List price
- $498,000
- Assessed value
- $496,700
- Property tax (2025)
- $4,897
- Holding entity
- NB Northboro Road Partners LLC
- Underwritten
- 2026-08-06
MLSPIN buyer-alert digest, Aug 6 2026, plus a direct MLS pull — MLS #73559966. Property facts, tax, condo-fee and the owner-occupancy disclosure from the MLS sheet. Rent is Zillow ZORI typical rent for Marlborough as of 2026-06-30, not a comp for this unit. Insurance is a statewide-typical 0.5%-of-price estimate. Screened via Namaste’s DSCR tool (rental-deal-simulator repo, dscr.py) on 2026-08-06 at 25% down conventional and against the in-house 1.15x DSCR program tier.
Follow this deal
This one did not clear at list price. Tell us you are interested and we will bring you the next deal that does — with the same math, shown the same way.