Roofstock vs Mashvisor vs PropStream: 3-way deal discovery comparison
Blog · Comparison · 10 min read
Published 2026-06-07
By TrueCap · built by a Philadelphia rental investor
Roofstock now sends individual buyers to Stessa's marketplace, Mashvisor scores neighborhoods, PropStream finds motivated sellers. See where TrueCap fits after.
The three in one sentence each
- Roofstock — on-market listings through Stessa. Browse MLS-sourced listings with investor metrics on Stessa's marketplace, and get connected with a vetted local agent when you want to make an offer. Listings are free to browse; confirm any transaction costs with the agent you're connected to.
- Mashvisor — market discovery + neighborhood scoring. Heatmaps for listing price, rental income, cash-on-cash, and Airbnb occupancy by neighborhood. Comparable traditional and Airbnb rental data. Published plans run $39.99–$99.99/month billed annually ($49.99–$119.99 billed quarterly), with Enterprise priced on request (as of 2026).
- PropStream — lead generation. Pull lists of motivated sellers (pre-foreclosure, pre-probate, vacant, tax delinquent), skip-trace to find owner phone + email, run direct mail or cold call campaigns. $99/month on the Essentials plan, billed monthly (as of 2026).
How they differ — what each is actually good at
- Roofstock (through Stessa's marketplace) suits investors who want to shop on-market rentals with investor metrics attached. The marketplace connects you with vetted, investor-friendly agents who can also connect you with property managers, and Stessa's help center says the agent helps with negotiating, inspecting, and closing the deal. Tradeoff: these are MLS listings shown with the marketplace's own projections and default estimates, so run your own numbers before relying on them.
- Mashvisor is great for the early "where should I invest?" phase. The heatmaps quickly answer questions like "which Phoenix zip codes have the best Airbnb cash flow?" or "is Memphis or Cleveland better for cash flow?". Once you've picked a market, the per-deal data is less differentiated.
- PropStream focuses on off-market deal sourcing. If you send direct mail or run cold-call campaigns, PropStream's lists + skip-tracing are built for exactly that. PropStream is built for wholesalers and off-market buy-and-hold investors.
Pricing comparison
- Roofstock (via Stessa's marketplace) — no monthly subscription to browse; confirm any transaction costs with your agent.
- Mashvisor — published plans run $39.99–$99.99/month billed annually ($49.99–$119.99 billed quarterly), with Enterprise priced on request. Lite covers individual-property analysis with long- and short-term rental estimates; Standard adds heatmaps, neighborhood analytics, rental comps, and editable expenses; Professional adds multifamily listings and more exports.
- PropStream — $99/month for the Essentials plan. On Essentials, skip tracing is 12¢ a contact and direct mail is a paid add-on (as of October 2026). No free plan; a 7-day free trial.
If you're buying one or two on-market properties a year, browsing Stessa's marketplace (where Roofstock now sends buyers) costs nothing to start. If you're actively sourcing 5-10+ deals a year off-market, PropStream's subscription is easier to justify. Mashvisor's subscription makes the most sense if you're market-shopping across regions; if you're a hometown investor, it's often overkill.
Which combo to use?
- Just Roofstock (via Stessa's marketplace) — for out-of-state SFR investors who want investor-filtered listings and a connection to a vetted local agent, who can also connect you with property managers.
- Mashvisor + your MLS access — for investors who want to pick the right market first, then source on-market deals through a local agent.
- PropStream + your closing team — for active off-market buyers / wholesalers / fix-and-flippers. You source the deal, negotiate, close with a title company.
- Mashvisor + Roofstock — Mashvisor picks the markets, and Stessa's marketplace (where Roofstock now sends buyers) shows listings in those markets.
Where TrueCap fits — after the deal is found
Each has some built-in analysis, but it starts from their data and defaults; you still have to underwrite the deal on assumptions you've checked.
That's the TrueCap job: paste the address, review editable HUD rent and FRED rate benchmarks, enter local property tax manually, replace every value where you have better evidence, then run cap rate / CoC / DSCR / cash flow and sensitize the inputs.
Marketplace projections, Mashvisor's property estimates and PropStream's calculators all start from each vendor's own data and defaults. TrueCap turns inputs you've reviewed into a modeled underwrite; you make the decision.
Honest quick decision
- "I want to own a rental without managing the sourcing or operations." Stessa's marketplace (where Roofstock now sends buyers) plus a property manager — Stessa's vetted agents can connect you with one.
- "I want to figure out which city / neighborhood to invest in." Mashvisor (then go local).
- "I want to find off-market deals + send direct mail." PropStream.
- "I have a deal in hand and want to know if it pencils." TrueCap (free).
FAQ
Roofstock, Mashvisor, or PropStream — which one for a beginner?
It depends on how much help you want. Roofstock's individual-investor listings now live on Stessa's marketplace, which shows MLS listings with investor metrics and connects you with a vetted, investor-friendly local agent who helps with negotiating, inspecting and closing and can connect you with property managers. Mashvisor and PropStream both assume you're going to find + close + operate yourself, which is more work.
Do any of these underwrite deals?
Partly. Stessa's marketplace (which now hosts Roofstock's listings) shows projected rent and returns from its own default assumptions — check each one against the property. Mashvisor estimates property-level cap rate and cash-on-cash from neighborhood rental comps; its Standard and Professional plans let you customize expenses and recalculate them. PropStream gives you leads and contact info plus built-in rental ROI and fix-and-flip calculators. For per-deal underwriting on assumptions you've checked, use TrueCap, DealCheck, or a spreadsheet.
Mashvisor vs Rentometer — what's the difference?
Rentometer centers on address-level rent estimates from nearby rental comps, with reports, market insights and a deal worksheet built around that rent data. Mashvisor is broader market discovery — heatmaps, neighborhood scoring, Airbnb data, rental comps. Use Rentometer when you need a tight rent estimate on a specific address; use Mashvisor when you're picking which market to invest in.
Is PropStream worth $99/month?
Depends on volume. If you send 1,000+ direct mail pieces a month or run an active wholesaling operation, PropStream's lists and skip-tracing are built for that work. If you buy 1-3 properties a year through MLS or your network, PropStream is overkill. For solo buy-and-hold investors, PropStream is often too much tool.
How does TrueCap relate to these three?
TrueCap is downstream of all of them. They help you find properties; TrueCap helps you screen modeled economics. A possible workflow is: find a property → underwrite in TrueCap → verify the material assumptions → record your own decision.
Try TrueCap free
However you source deals — on-market marketplace, market heatmap, or off-market list — run them through TrueCap before you offer. Free, no signup. The deal you didn't buy because the numbers didn't work is the trade that made you money.