Vermilion County

Vermilion County sits at a gross rent-to-price ratio of 10.5%, which puts it firmly in cash-flow territory and well outside the appreciation-driven markets where that ratio typically compresses below 6%. The median home price of $101,321 against a median rent of $886 per month drives a modeled cap rate of 6.82% at a purchase price that most investors can finance without stretching. Year-over-year home price growth of 3.02% is positive but modest, consistent with a market where price appreciation is a secondary return driver rather than the thesis. The affordability index of 100 and a perfect cash-flow score of 100 out of 100 confirm what the raw numbers already suggest: this is one of the more accessible entry points in the country for landlords who underwrite on income rather than on projected equity gains.

The investor this market suits is a cash-flow buyer with a buy-and-hold horizon, ideally one who is comfortable operating in a smaller Midwestern market and is not depending on rapid equity appreciation to make the deal work. At a $101,321 purchase price with 20% down ($20,264), the modeled monthly mortgage at 6.85% comes to $531. Estimated expenses run $310 per month, leaving a modeled cash-on-cash return of 2.32% and a monthly free cash flow of roughly $45 on the base case. That $45 is thin, and any cost overrun, vacancy, or maintenance spike can push it negative, so buyers should underwrite conservatively and verify local rents carefully before closing. The cap rate of 6.82% is the more durable number here: it reflects the income yield on the asset before financing and holds up reasonably well against the 6.85% rate environment. Value-add operators who can acquire below the median and push rents or reduce vacancy will find the low entry price creates real room to work.

The tax and insurance carry on this market deserves serious attention. The combined monthly tax and insurance figure is $215, which is already baked into the $310 expense estimate above, but the composition matters. Illinois carries a state-average effective property tax rate of 2.27%, flagged here as very high, and at that rate it represents the single largest expense line after the mortgage. On a $101,321 asset that annualizes to roughly $2,300 in property taxes, or $192 per month, before insurance. That is not a rounding error on a deal where gross rent is $886. The 2.27% is a state-average estimate (Tax Foundation 2024) and actual Vermilion County township rates may differ, but it should have its own line on your underwrite and a sensitivity case that tests what happens if assessed value increases. Illinois's property tax environment is a structural feature of every deal in this state, not a one-time surprise.

Vermilion County's stability score of 50 out of 100 is the clearest risk signal in the dataset. A score at the midpoint on stability, in a county of 74,113 people, points to concentration risk: a smaller labor market is more exposed to the closure or contraction of a single employer or industry than a metro with diversified demand. No economic anchor data was provided, so the specific composition of the local employment base cannot be assessed here, but any investor underwriting this market should independently research the county's top employers and industry mix before committing. Demographic trends in smaller Illinois counties have generally trended toward population loss, which over a long hold period can pressure both rents and resale values. The 3.02% price appreciation in the trailing year is encouraging, but a single-year figure does not resolve the longer-term demographic question.

Against its Illinois neighbors, Vermilion is the clear outlier on price. The next-lowest-priced comparable in the dataset is Massac County at $112,844, then Marshall at $131,595, Richland at $132,577, Edwards at $124,765, and Menard at $198,736. Vermilion's $101,321 median is 10% below the next-closest and nearly half the price of Menard. All five neighbors score between 79 and 81 overall; Vermilion scores 83 and ranks first nationally out of 1,000 counties in this dataset. The lower price point directly compounds the rent-to-price ratio advantage: at Massac's $112,844 price, the same $886 rent would produce a ratio of roughly 9.4%, still attractive but meaningfully below Vermilion's 10.5%. Choose Vermilion over a neighbor when the investment thesis is maximizing income yield at the lowest possible capital deployment, when you can accept the Illinois property tax headwind, and when you have done the work to validate that local rental demand is durable enough to keep vacancy from undermining the already-thin cash flow margin.