Franklin County

Franklin County, Arkansas sits at a median home price of $182,217 with year-over-year appreciation of 3.79% and an affordability index of 91, meaning buyers here face meaningfully less price pressure than the national baseline. The data provided does not include a rent figure or cap rate for this county, so cash-flow math cannot be completed from the available inputs. What the scores do tell you is unambiguous: the cash-flow score registers at zero, the appreciation score at 82, and the overall at 75, placing Franklin in the top 7% nationally (53rd out of 1,000 counties) and first in Arkansas out of 74 counties ranked. This is not a cash-flow market as the data describes it. It is an appreciation-oriented market at a price point that remains accessible.

That profile suits a specific type of buyer. If you are underwriting for monthly cash-flow surplus from day one, Franklin County's zero cash-flow score is the data telling you to look elsewhere. The play here, if there is one, is acquiring affordable assets, currently under $183,000 at the median, in a market appreciating at close to 4% annually while carrying relatively low operating costs. A value-add operator who can force equity through renovation and then either refinance or sell into that appreciation trend has a reasonable thesis. So does an investor with a longer hold horizon who prioritizes asset growth over current yield, particularly given that entry prices remain well below what comparable appreciation scores command in higher-cost states. The affordability score of 91 means you are not overpaying to participate in an 82-rated appreciation market.

The $167 per month combined tax and insurance figure is a genuine tailwind worth noting in your underwrite. Arkansas's state-average effective property tax rate is 0.62%, flagged as low, and the insurance rate estimate comes in at 0.48%, producing approximately $1,130 in annual taxes and $875 in annual insurance on a median-priced asset. That is a combined annual carry cost of roughly $2,005 before debt service, maintenance, or vacancy, which is lean by national standards. To be precise: the 0.62% rate is a state-average estimate from Tax Foundation 2024 data, and your actual county or township rate in Franklin may differ, so pull the local assessor's figures before closing. That said, even if the real number runs modestly higher, the directional story, low tax friction relative to most of the country, holds.

The stability score of 50 is the number that deserves the most attention here. A market can appreciate and remain affordable, but a mid-range stability score on a population of 17,160 signals that investors should think carefully about tenant demand depth, economic concentration, and the county's ability to sustain appreciation if local conditions shift. No economic anchor data was provided for Franklin County, so specific employers or demand drivers cannot be cited. What the population figure alone tells you is that this is a small market, and small markets can move quickly in either direction when a single employer or demographic trend shifts. That is the core risk: concentration of demand in a shallow pool of renters and buyers.

Compared to its neighbors, Franklin County holds the highest overall score in its peer group at 75, edging out Prairie County (74), Grant County (74), Scott County (73), Perry County (71), and Jefferson County (71). On price, Franklin sits in the middle of that range. Grant County at $206,491 costs more for the same overall score of 74, making Franklin the better entry point if the appreciation thesis is what you are buying. Prairie County at $149,082 and Scott County at $152,008 are cheaper but score lower overall. Jefferson County is the outlier worth examining separately: at a median of $84,271, a rent of $885.69, and a rent-to-price ratio of 0.126, Jefferson generates far more rental yield on paper, making it the cash-flow pick in this peer group. If your strategy is income today, Jefferson's numbers are the ones to run. If your strategy is appreciation and affordable acquisition in a higher-scoring market, Franklin's 3.79% price growth and 82 appreciation score justify the premium over its neighbors. Choose Franklin over Jefferson when you believe in the growth trajectory and can absorb the near-term yield gap; choose Jefferson when current income is the constraint.