Wayne County

Wayne County sits at a median home price of $126,208, a 5.74% year-over-year appreciation rate, and an affordability index of 100, meaning homes here are about as accessible as they get relative to local incomes. The appreciation score of 88 out of 100 is the standout figure, and a 5.74% annual price gain on a $126,208 asset is a meaningful return in percentage terms even if the dollar appreciation is modest in absolute numbers. What's conspicuously absent from this data set is a cap rate, a monthly mortgage figure, and an estimated cash flow, all of which score at zero. That's not a rounding artifact; it signals that the rental income data needed to underwrite a cash-flow position simply isn't available or doesn't pencil at current conditions. The cash flow score confirms this: zero out of 100.

This market is built for an appreciation buyer or a long-hold speculative buyer, not a cash-flow operator. The numbers are blunt about it. If you're buying Wayne County rentals expecting monthly income to carry the investment, you don't have the data to support that thesis here, and what data exists doesn't encourage it. Where this county makes sense is for an investor with a long time horizon who wants cheap entry, $126,208 purchase price with $25,242 down at 6.85%, and is willing to accept break-even or negative carry in exchange for price appreciation running near 6% annually. A value-add operator looking to force equity through renovation could also find a foothold here given the low entry price, but should stress-test exit cap rates carefully before assuming a buyer pool exists at the improved value.

No economic anchor data was provided for Wayne County, so any commentary on specific employers or major demand drivers would be fabrication. What the population figure does tell you is that this is a small market, 16,127 residents, which is a structural fact worth sitting with. Thin rental demand pools, limited buyer competition on exit, and fewer comps for appraisal all come with a county of this size. Stability scores at 50 out of 100, which is middling and consistent with a small, rural Illinois county that isn't insulated by a large diversified employer base or a university anchor.

The tax and insurance picture here is a genuine problem for anyone trying to make cash flow work, and it needs its own line on your underwrite. Illinois carries a state-average effective property tax rate of 2.27%, which the Tax Foundation classifies as very high, and Wayne County uses that state-average estimate as a baseline. Actual county and township rates may differ, but directionally, at 2.27% applied to a $126,208 purchase, you're looking at $2,865 in annual property taxes. Add $341 in annual insurance and you're carrying $267 per month in taxes and insurance before a single dollar of mortgage, maintenance, or vacancy. On a low-priced asset with an already-absent cash flow score, $267 monthly in fixed carry costs is not a footnote, it is the story. Any investor underwriting this market needs to pull the specific county and township millage rate before closing, because even modest deviation from the state average changes the cash-flow math materially.

The concentration risk here is demographic and geographic. A population of 16,127 means a narrow renter pool, and if local employment softens or population continues any outmigration trend typical of rural downstate Illinois, vacancy can move fast with few natural stabilizers. The stability score of 50 reflects this. Regulatory risk isn't flagged by the data, but Illinois as a state carries landlord-unfavorable tendencies in its larger jurisdictions; rural counties like Wayne have historically been more landlord-neutral, though that is a state-level observation, not a Wayne-specific data point provided here.

Compared to its neighbors, Wayne County competes in a tight band. Edwards County comes in cheaper at $124,765 with an overall score of 79, essentially the same market at a fractionally lower price and marginally lower score. Massac County is the cheapest neighbor at $112,844 and carries an overall score of 81, slightly better than Wayne's 80 at a lower entry point, which may warrant a closer look if pure affordability and score efficiency matter. Marshall County at $131,595 and Richland County at $132,577 are both priced higher with identical or slightly better overall scores of 81 and 80 respectively, meaning you pay more without a clear quality premium over Wayne. Menard County at $198,736 is the outlier, priced 57% higher than Wayne with the same overall score of 80, which implies worse price efficiency. Choose Wayne over its neighbors when low entry price and a high appreciation score are the priority and you're comfortable with the Illinois property tax burden; choose Massac if you want a slightly lower price point with a marginally better overall score; avoid Menard if price-per-score-point efficiency matters to your portfolio construction.