Nemaha County

Nemaha County posts a cash-flow score of 0 in the underlying model, which tells you the critical piece upfront: the rent-to-price math here does not produce meaningful day-one income at current price levels. The median home price sits at $253,106, up 11.15% year-over-year, and the appreciation score of 77 out of 100 reflects that trajectory. With a cap rate of 0 recorded and no positive cash-on-cash return in the current estimate, this county sits firmly on the appreciation end of the spectrum. The affordability index of 76 and an overall national percentile rank of 78th out of 1,000 counties suggest the market is relatively accessible compared to coastal benchmarks, but affordability alone does not manufacture cash flow when rent levels lag behind purchase prices.

The investor this market suits is one buying for equity accumulation rather than monthly income, someone comfortable carrying a property at breakeven or slight negative for several years in exchange for price appreciation that ran over 11% in the past year. A cash-flow buyer running numbers at 6.85% on a $253,106 purchase with 20% down ($50,621) will find the monthly debt service cuts hard against whatever rent the market supports. There is no indication in the data that gross yields here justify the carry at today's rates. A value-add operator might find angles if properties are sufficiently distressed below the median, but the median price itself does not offer a cushion. The appreciation buyer has a legitimate case: an 11% annual price gain on a median-priced asset represents over $28,000 in equity in one year, and a 77 appreciation score places this county well above average on that dimension.

Economic anchor data for Nemaha County is not provided, so specific employer commentary is not possible. What the data does convey is a population of 10,219, a figure that puts this squarely in small-county territory. Rental demand in markets this size tends to be thin and concentrated, meaning vacancy swings matter more per unit than they would in a larger metro. Stability scores at 50 out of 100, exactly at the midpoint, which is consistent with a small agricultural or mixed-economy county where employment is less diversified and demand drivers are harder to model with confidence.

The monthly tax and insurance load of $420 deserves attention when underwriting cash flow. At a 1.41% state-average effective property tax rate, Kansas sits in a range the model flags as normal, meaning it is neither a material tailwind nor a significant headwind relative to national peers. However, $3,569 in annual property tax and $1,468 in annual insurance on a $253,106 property amounts to $420 per month before you touch principal, interest, maintenance, or vacancy. On a thin-margin investment, that figure needs its own dedicated line on your underwrite. The standard caveat applies: 1.41% is a state-average estimate from Tax Foundation 2024 data, and actual rates at the county or township level in Nemaha may differ, sometimes materially.

The central risk here is concentration and scale. A population of 10,219 means the local rental pool is small enough that a single large employer contraction or demographic shift, such as continued rural outmigration common to many small Kansas counties, can move vacancy rates in ways that a larger market absorbs more easily. No vacancy or crime data is provided, but investors should treat small-population markets with a 50 stability score as requiring conservative vacancy assumptions and on-the-ground local knowledge before committing capital.

Compared to the neighboring counties in the dataset, Nemaha carries the second-highest median price after Jefferson County at $269,844, and it lacks the rent-to-price ratios that make some neighbors more compelling for income. Barton County at a median of $119,265 and a gross yield ratio of 0.0828 is the obvious contrast: an investor prioritizing cash flow should be underwriting Barton, not Nemaha. Geary County at $212,411 and a 0.0707 ratio also generates more income per dollar deployed. Butler County at $241,761 and a 0.0606 ratio is closer to Nemaha's profile but priced lower. Nemaha makes the most sense over these neighbors only if your primary thesis is price appreciation in a relatively affordable Kansas market and you are prepared to carry the asset without relying on rent to cover costs. If your return model requires positive cash-on-cash in year one, the data points you toward Barton or Geary instead.