Pope County

Pope County, Illinois sits at a median home price of $148,158 with 8.22% year-over-year appreciation, which is the headline number that makes this market interesting. The affordability index of 98 and a national percentile rank of 98th out of 1,000 counties confirm that entry costs are low relative to what the market is delivering on the price growth side. That said, the cash flow score is a flat zero, and the cap rate and cash-on-cash return fields are both zero, meaning the rental income data needed to underwrite a yield play simply isn't available here. Investors cannot assume a cash flow story without doing deeper local rent research before committing capital.

Given those numbers, Pope County is an appreciation play, not an income play, at least based on the available data. The 8.22% price growth on a $148,158 asset is a meaningful nominal gain in absolute dollar terms, and the affordability index of 98 means an investor can get into this market at a low basis without stretching. That combination suits a buyer who wants to acquire at a low entry point, ride appreciation, and is not depending on the rental income to service debt from day one. A value-add operator looking to force equity through renovation could also find the low median price attractive as a starting point, but without rent data, underwriting the post-renovation yield requires sourcing comparable rents independently. Cash flow buyers who need the property to pencil on day one from rental income should look elsewhere until rental data is in hand.

There is no economic anchor or employer data provided for Pope County, and manufacturing or inventing context here would be misleading. What the raw demographics do say is that this is a county of 3,799 people, which is a very small population base. That scale matters for rental demand: thin population means thin renter pools, and vacancy in a small market can move materially when even a handful of units turn over simultaneously. Investors accustomed to markets with tens of thousands of renters should recalibrate their assumptions about absorption and leasing velocity here.

The tax and insurance picture deserves serious attention before this market looks as attractive as the appreciation score suggests. Illinois carries a state-average effective property tax rate of 2.27%, flagged as very high, and that rate is a real underwriting consideration that needs its own line on your pro forma. On the $148,158 purchase price, that translates to approximately $3,363 in annual property taxes. Add $400 in estimated annual insurance, and the combined monthly tax and insurance burden is $314. On a leveraged rental, $314 per month in carry cost before mortgage, maintenance, management, and vacancy is a significant drag, particularly when the rental income side of the equation is unconfirmed. The 2.27% figure is a state-average estimate per Tax Foundation 2024 data, and actual Pope County or township-level rates may differ, so pulling the county assessor data before closing is not optional here, it is essential.

The concentration risk in a market of 3,799 people is the clearest structural concern the data supports. A single large employer relocating, a population decline of a few hundred residents, or a shift in regional demographics could move vacancy rates meaningfully in a market this small. The stability score of 50 reflects exactly that exposure. Investors should not size positions here the way they would in a 100,000-plus population county, and anyone building a portfolio should treat Pope County as a satellite position, not a core allocation.

Comparing Pope County to its neighbors clarifies where it fits. Iroquois County at $149,561 and an overall score of 78 is essentially a coin flip on price and score. Bureau County at $143,471 comes in slightly cheaper with the same score of 78. Edwards County is the cheapest of the group at $124,765 but posts a slightly higher overall score of 79. Saint Clair County at $173,515 median price has actual rent data showing a rent-to-price ratio of 0.0844, and Peoria County at $154,382 posts a 0.0908 rent-to-price ratio with a median rent of $1,168, both of which make those counties immediately more underwritable for a rental investor because the income side of the equation is visible. If rental yield certainty matters to you, Peoria County's 9.08% gross rent multiplier and larger population base make it the stronger operational choice. Pope County at $148,158 with 8.22% appreciation makes sense over its neighbors only when you are explicitly buying the low basis and the appreciation trajectory, are comfortable operating in a thin rental market, and have done the independent rent research to confirm that the income side of the trade can at least cover carry costs.