Zillow and Census data, September 2026
Rental property math in 574 metros
At 80% LTV and an assumed 7.25% rate, the typical single-family rent covers a DSCR loan at 1.05x in 126 of 574 metros. Among the 100 largest, only 8 do.
Divide the typical rent by the full monthly payment and the median metro comes out at 0.91x, and so does the median large metro. In most of the country, then, an 80% loan on a typical house costs more each month than the house rents for. The large metros with the best ratios are McAllen, TX (1.29x), Jackson, MS (1.15x), Baton Rouge, LA (1.13x), Columbia, SC (1.13x), New Orleans, LA (1.11x). The weakest are San Jose, CA (0.48x), San Francisco, CA (0.57x), Urban Honolulu, HI (0.66x).
Nationally, Zillow's typical home value was $366,157 in September 2026 (+1.2% over the year) and the typical single-family rent $2,266 (+3.1%). Where rents are rising faster than prices, the ratio is getting easier each month. Sort the table by "Rent 1 yr" to see where.
The 35 largest metros, sorted by DSCR
80% LTV, 30-year fully amortizing, no HOA. The rate is a placeholder for the math, not a quote. Click a column heading to sort. 35 largest metros shown.
| Miami, FL | $476,815 | $3,433 | 0.72% | +3.1% | +0.3% | 0.83% | 1.08x | $3,329 | $109,667 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pittsburgh, PA | $228,201 | $1,659 | 0.73% | +3.0% | +0.2% | 1.23% | 1.04x | $1,673 | $52,486 |
| Houston, TX | $302,832 | $2,220 | 0.73% | +0.9% | -1.8% | 1.36% | 1.03x | $2,254 | $69,651 |
| Tampa, FL | $356,843 | $2,390 | 0.67% | +1.7% | -0.9% | 0.80% | 1.01x | $2,481 | $82,074 |
| Indianapolis, IN | $291,634 | $1,901 | 0.65% | +4.9% | +1.0% | 0.83% | 0.98x | $2,035 | $67,076 |
| Cleveland, OH | $250,001 | $1,742 | 0.70% | +4.4% | +3.9% | 1.49% | 0.97x | $1,890 | $57,500 |
| Orlando, FL | $383,302 | $2,434 | 0.64% | +1.7% | -1.4% | 0.76% | 0.96x | $2,652 | $88,159 |
| Cincinnati, OH | $305,940 | $2,046 | 0.67% | +4.0% | +2.2% | 1.19% | 0.96x | $2,232 | $70,366 |
| Chicago, IL | $355,650 | $2,536 | 0.71% | +4.1% | +5.0% | 1.75% | 0.96x | $2,768 | $81,799 |
| San Antonio, TX | $273,806 | $1,820 | 0.66% | +0.5% | -1.9% | 1.21% | 0.95x | $2,003 | $62,975 |
| Baltimore, MD | $396,959 | $2,504 | 0.63% | +2.5% | +0.4% | 0.92% | 0.94x | $2,802 | $91,301 |
| Dallas, TX | $358,242 | $2,345 | 0.65% | +1.8% | -2.0% | 1.27% | 0.93x | $2,638 | $82,396 |
| Minneapolis, MN | $387,807 | $2,443 | 0.63% | +3.6% | +1.7% | 1.03% | 0.92x | $2,775 | $89,196 |
| Atlanta, GA | $375,898 | $2,275 | 0.61% | +2.6% | -1.5% | 0.79% | 0.91x | $2,612 | $86,457 |
| Columbus, OH | $326,910 | $2,108 | 0.64% | +4.8% | +1.3% | 1.32% | 0.91x | $2,423 | $75,189 |
| Detroit, MI | $264,316 | $1,673 | 0.63% | +4.2% | +1.8% | 1.21% | 0.91x | $1,933 | $60,793 |
| St. Louis, MO | $273,164 | $1,689 | 0.62% | +4.7% | +3.3% | 1.13% | 0.90x | $1,978 | $62,828 |
| Charlotte, NC | $381,392 | $2,189 | 0.57% | +3.2% | -0.8% | 0.60% | 0.89x | $2,587 | $87,720 |
| Philadelphia, PA | $386,048 | $2,292 | 0.59% | +3.2% | +2.5% | 1.23% | 0.85x | $2,832 | $88,791 |
| Washington, DC | $569,857 | $3,211 | 0.56% | +2.6% | +0.2% | 0.84% | 0.85x | $3,985 | $131,067 |
| Las Vegas, NV | $422,654 | $2,246 | 0.53% | +2.1% | -2.6% | 0.52% | 0.83x | $2,834 | $97,210 |
| Phoenix, AZ | $441,097 | $2,302 | 0.52% | +1.7% | -1.1% | 0.39% | 0.83x | $2,910 | $101,452 |
| Riverside, CA | $580,321 | $3,147 | 0.54% | +2.7% | +0.6% | 0.78% | 0.82x | $4,024 | $133,474 |
| Denver, CO | $555,487 | $2,930 | 0.53% | +1.6% | -1.8% | 0.57% | 0.82x | $3,753 | $127,762 |
| Kansas City, MO | $324,887 | $1,792 | 0.55% | +4.8% | +3.7% | 1.06% | 0.81x | $2,332 | $74,724 |
| Austin, TX | $414,273 | $2,285 | 0.55% | +1.7% | -4.3% | 1.27% | 0.79x | $3,052 | $95,283 |
| Portland, OR | $539,403 | $2,694 | 0.50% | +1.7% | -0.2% | 0.86% | 0.75x | $3,780 | $124,063 |
| Sacramento, CA | $572,813 | $2,809 | 0.49% | +2.7% | +0.0% | 0.76% | 0.74x | $3,963 | $131,747 |
| Seattle, WA | $720,147 | $3,435 | 0.48% | +3.5% | -1.6% | 0.75% | 0.72x | $4,980 | $165,634 |
| Los Angeles, CA | $950,020 | $4,420 | 0.47% | +2.5% | +1.3% | 0.65% | 0.72x | $6,482 | $218,505 |
| Boston, MA | $725,639 | $3,500 | 0.48% | +2.0% | +2.1% | 0.96% | 0.71x | $5,151 | $166,897 |
| San Diego, CA | $926,961 | $4,121 | 0.44% | +2.9% | +0.8% | 0.63% | 0.69x | $6,307 | $213,201 |
| New York, NY | $730,949 | $3,464 | 0.47% | +4.1% | +4.9% | 1.28% | 0.67x | $5,391 | $168,118 |
| San Francisco, CA | $1,120,379 | $4,222 | 0.38% | +6.7% | +3.1% | 0.76% | 0.57x | $7,750 | $257,687 |
| San Jose, CA | $1,523,615 | $4,785 | 0.31% | +7.4% | +0.2% | 0.67% | 0.48x | $10,426 | $350,431 |
Metro pages, A to Z
- Akron, OH
- Albany, NY
- Albuquerque, NM
- Allentown, PA
- Atlanta, GA
- Augusta, GA
- Austin, TX
- Bakersfield, CA
- Baltimore, MD
- Baton Rouge, LA
- Birmingham, AL
- Boise City, ID
- Boston, MA
- Bridgeport, CT
- Buffalo, NY
- Cape Coral, FL
- Charleston, SC
- Charlotte, NC
- Chattanooga, TN
- Chicago, IL
- Cincinnati, OH
- Cleveland, OH
- Colorado Springs, CO
- Columbia, SC
- Columbus, OH
- Dallas, TX
- Deltona, FL
- Denver, CO
- Des Moines, IA
- Detroit, MI
- Durham, NC
- El Paso, TX
- Fresno, CA
- Grand Rapids, MI
- Greensboro, NC
- Greenville, SC
- Harrisburg, PA
- Hartford, CT
- Houston, TX
- Indianapolis, IN
- Jackson, MS
- Jacksonville, FL
- Kansas City, MO
- Knoxville, TN
- Lakeland, FL
- Las Vegas, NV
- Little Rock, AR
- Los Angeles, CA
- Louisville, KY
- Madison, WI
- McAllen, TX
- Memphis, TN
- Miami, FL
- Milwaukee, WI
- Minneapolis, MN
- Modesto, CA
- Nashville, TN
- New Haven, CT
- New Orleans, LA
- New York, NY
- North Port, FL
- Ogden, UT
- Oklahoma City, OK
- Omaha, NE
- Orlando, FL
- Oxnard, CA
- Palm Bay, FL
- Philadelphia, PA
- Phoenix, AZ
- Pittsburgh, PA
- Portland, OR
- Providence, RI
- Provo, UT
- Raleigh, NC
- Richmond, VA
- Riverside, CA
- Rochester, NY
- Sacramento, CA
- Salt Lake City, UT
- San Antonio, TX
- San Diego, CA
- San Francisco, CA
- San Jose, CA
- Scranton, PA
- Seattle, WA
- Spokane, WA
- Springfield, MA
- St. Louis, MO
- Stockton, CA
- Syracuse, NY
- Tampa, FL
- Toledo, OH
- Tucson, AZ
- Tulsa, OK
- Urban Honolulu, HI
- Virginia Beach, VA
- Washington, DC
- Wichita, KS
- Winston, NC
- Worcester, MA
How the numbers are built
Price is the Zillow Home Value Index for the metro: the typical value of homes in the middle third of the market, single-family and condo. Rent is Zillow's Observed Rent Index for single-family rentals only, because that is what a 1-4 unit investor buys. Zillow's all-homes rent index, which includes apartments, runs $334 lower nationally ($1,932), so using it would understate what a house rents for.
Rent / price is monthly rent divided by price. The 1-year changes compare September 2026 with the same month a year earlier.
Tax rate is what homeowners in the metro actually paid in property tax as a share of what their homes are worth, from the Census Bureau's 2024 American Community Survey. Treat it as a floor for a rental. Homestead exemptions do not apply to an investment property, and in states that cap assessments until a sale (California and Florida among them) a buyer is taxed on the new price, so a rental's first bill is often higher than this average.
DSCR is the lender's test: monthly rent divided by principal, interest, taxes and insurance on an 80% loan, 30-year fully amortizing. Three inputs are assumptions you can change above the table: the rate (7.25%, a placeholder, not a quote), insurance (0.6% of value a year; a quote in a hurricane or wildfire zone can run well above that) and closing costs (3% of price). No HOA or flood insurance is included.
Worked through for a $300,000 house at the median tax rate: the loan is $240,000, principal and interest $1,637 a month, taxes $188, insurance $150, so the payment is $1,975. Times 1.05 is $2,074, the rent that clears the program minimum.
Cash to close is the 20% down payment plus closing costs. It leaves out reserves and the first year's insurance, which the lender will also want to see.
21 Zillow metros are left out: those wholly in North Dakota, South Dakota or Vermont, where the program does not lend, and a few small metros that Zillow still reports under boundaries the Census Bureau has since redrawn, so no tax figure lines up with them. Metros with no single-family rent index are not in Zillow's rent file and are not listed.
Sources
- Home values: Zillow Research, Zillow Home Value Index (ZHVI), all homes, middle tier, smoothed and seasonally adjusted, metro level, September 2026 (CSV).
- Rents: Zillow Research, Zillow Observed Rent Index (ZORI), single-family residences, smoothed, metro level, September 2026 (CSV). The all-homes index that includes apartments is used only for the comparison line (CSV).
- Property tax: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 2024 1-year estimates. The rate is aggregate real estate taxes paid (table B25090, file) divided by aggregate home value (table B25082, file) for owner-occupied homes in the metro area or state.
- Distances between metros: U.S. Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer file for metro areas (ZIP).
Home value and rent data: Zillow, Zillow Home Value Index and Zillow Observed Rent Index. Zillow does not review or endorse this page. Tax and geography data: U.S. Census Bureau. Loan math by Doors Funded. Refreshed when Zillow publishes a new month.
Questions people ask
Where does rent cover a DSCR loan at 80% LTV?
Among the 100 largest metros, 8 clear 1.05x at the typical price and rent: McAllen, TX (1.29x), Jackson, MS (1.15x), Baton Rouge, LA (1.13x), Columbia, SC (1.13x), New Orleans, LA (1.11x), Miami, FL (1.08x), Syracuse, NY (1.08x), Lakeland, FL (1.06x). Across all 574 metros, 126 do, and the highest ratios are in small markets such as Meridian, MS (2.08x), Roanoke Rapids, NC (1.84x), Altus, OK (1.77x). These are metro-wide typicals at an assumed 7.25% rate with insurance at 0.6% of value, and a real insurance quote in a hurricane zone can turn a pass into a miss. A house bought below the typical price, or a 2-4 unit building, can clear where the typical house does not.
What rent-to-price ratio does a rental need to qualify?
At 80% LTV, 7.25% on a 30-year loan, the median metro tax rate of 0.75% and insurance at 0.6% of value, monthly rent has to be about 0.69% of the price to reach 1.05x. On a $300,000 house that is $2,074 a month. The old 1% rule ($3,000 on that house) is more than enough, but only 8 of 574 metros meet it at typical prices. The median metro sits at 0.61%.
Will the lender use these rent and value figures?
No. The lender orders an appraisal that sets the property's value and its market rent. On a leased unit it uses the lower of the lease and that market rent; on a vacant unit, 90% of market rent. Use this table to pick markets and sanity-check a deal, then run the property's own numbers.
Have a rental under contract?
Send the numbers. We will tell you plainly whether it clears the DSCR test and what the loan looks like.