How to Underwrite a Rental Property, City by City
Every US market has its own quirks — property tax caps, insurance regimes, landlord-tenant rules, and rent-to-price ratios that make or break a deal. Below are the underwriting benchmarks for the 29 metros we cover most often. Pick your city, or skip to the tool.
Alabama
- Rental underwriting in Birmingham, AL — Lowest property taxes in the Southeast; high cash flow.
Arizona
- Rental underwriting in Phoenix, AZ — Low taxes and insurance offset thinner rent-to-price ratios.
Colorado
- Rental underwriting in Denver, CO — Low property tax but high price-to-rent; appreciation-first.
Florida
- Rental underwriting in Tampa, FL — Strong rents undercut by the highest insurance costs in the US.
- Rental underwriting in Orlando, FL — Tourism-adjacent rental market with STR overlap risk.
- Rental underwriting in Jacksonville, FL — Best cash-flow metro in Florida with military-anchored demand.
Georgia
- Rental underwriting in Atlanta, GA — Cash-flow-friendly Sun Belt metro with steady in-migration.
Idaho
- Rental underwriting in Boise, ID — Post-2021 correction ongoing; underwriting rent flat is prudent.
Illinois
- Rental underwriting in Chicago, IL — Cash-flow-viable but tax and regulation are dominant risks.
Indiana
- Rental underwriting in Indianapolis, IN — Institutional-investor favorite; predictable cash flow.
Michigan
- Rental underwriting in Detroit, MI — Nominal high yields; assessment-to-market gap is the trap.
Minnesota
- Rental underwriting in Minneapolis, MN — Balanced fundamentals; strong tenant-protection regime.
Missouri
- Rental underwriting in Kansas City, MO — Balanced cash-flow and appreciation Midwest metro.
- Rental underwriting in St. Louis, MO — Deep cash-flow inventory; block-by-block risk variation.
Nevada
- Rental underwriting in Las Vegas, NV — No state income tax, low property tax, cyclical rents.
North Carolina
- Rental underwriting in Charlotte, NC — Steady-appreciation banking hub; thinner cash flow, better equity.
- Rental underwriting in Raleigh, NC — Research Triangle demand; low vacancy, thin cap rates.
Ohio
- Rental underwriting in Columbus, OH — Strong Midwest cash flow with Ohio State-anchored demand.
- Rental underwriting in Cleveland, OH — Highest gross yields in the US; capital preservation is the risk.
- Rental underwriting in Cincinnati, OH — Steady Midwest cash flow with Hamilton County reassessment risk.
Oklahoma
- Rental underwriting in Oklahoma City, OK — Affordable entry price with severe-weather insurance cost.
Pennsylvania
- Rental underwriting in Philadelphia, PA — Cash-flow viable rowhome stock with material regulatory burden.
Tennessee
- Rental underwriting in Memphis, TN — Turnkey-rental capital; high yields with high management intensity.
- Rental underwriting in Nashville, TN — Appreciation play; cash flow requires 30%+ down.
Texas
- Rental underwriting in Dallas, TX — High taxes, no state income tax, strong job-driven demand.
- Rental underwriting in Houston, TX — Best big-city cash flow in Texas, offset by tax and flood risk.
- Rental underwriting in Austin, TX — Appreciation-driven; near-impossible to cash-flow with 25% down.
- Rental underwriting in San Antonio, TX — Cheapest entry price in Texas majors; military demand base.
Utah
- Rental underwriting in Salt Lake City, UT — Tight vacancy and strong appreciation; cash-flow difficult.