Pendleton County

Pendleton County sits at a median home price of $241,093, a 3.72% year-over-year gain, with an affordability index of 78 out of 100. The data does not include a median rent figure or gross rent-to-price ratio for this county, which means cap rate and cash-on-cash return are listed as zero in the model, not because the market produces no income, but because the inputs to calculate them weren't available. What the scoring system does reflect is an appreciation score of 82, an overall score of 71, and a cash flow score of 0, which places Pendleton clearly on the appreciation end of the spectrum. Nationally, it ranks 138th out of 1,000 counties analyzed, landing in the 82nd percentile, and 29th out of 120 Kentucky counties. That's a meaningful signal: this county is outperforming most of the state and most of the benchmark universe on appreciation metrics, but you cannot underwrite it as a cash flow play without pulling local rent comps independently.

That scoring profile tells you exactly who this market is and isn't for. If you are a cash flow buyer who needs a model to spit out a positive number before you deploy capital, the data here won't give you that comfort, and you shouldn't assume it exists. If you are an appreciation-oriented investor willing to accept thinner or breakeven cash flow in exchange for equity accumulation, the 3.72% annual price growth on a $241,000 median is a reasonable setup, especially at a basis well below most metro markets. The affordability score of 78 suggests the market is not yet priced out for owner-occupants or renters, which supports continued demand. A value-add operator who can buy below median, improve, and either sell or refinance into a better rent-to-price ratio may find the entry point workable, but that thesis requires underwriting from local rent data, not this model.

At $239 per month for combined property tax and insurance, the carry cost on a median-priced asset is not punishing. The state-average effective tax rate of 0.86% is flagged as normal, meaning it's neither a tailwind nor a headwind worth isolating on its own. The $2,073 annual tax and $796 annual insurance are simply line items you'd expect in a market at this price point. As always, the 0.86% figure is a state-average estimate from Tax Foundation 2024 data, and actual rates at the county or township level may differ, so verify the specific parcel rate before finalizing your underwrite. At a 6.85% interest rate on a $241,093 purchase with 20% down ($48,219), the mortgage load is the most variable piece of the cost stack, and even modest rental income shortfalls will matter at that rate.

No economic anchors or employer data were provided for Pendleton County, so no conclusions can be drawn here about job concentration or institutional demand drivers for rentals. That absence is itself worth flagging for due diligence: a county of 14,638 people with no dominant employer data visible in this dataset warrants a direct look at what's driving household formation and income levels locally before committing capital.

The small population of 14,638 is the most concrete risk this data surfaces. A market this size has shallow liquidity, meaning buyer pools on exit are limited, rental demand is driven by a narrow employment base, and any single-employer disruption can move vacancy rates materially. You won't find the tenant depth of a mid-size metro here, and days-on-market for a resale can stretch in a way that larger markets absorb more easily. Concentration risk is real at this scale. There's no vacancy or crime data in this dataset to quantify those dimensions further.

Against its neighbors, Pendleton's $241,093 median is the highest in the comparison set, running above Harrison County ($227,218), Gallatin County ($221,357), Daviess County ($206,762), McCracken County ($187,133), and Graves County ($165,250). Its overall score of 71 is competitive but not dominant: McCracken, Daviess, and Graves each score 72, while Harrison and Gallatin match at 70. Daviess County is the only neighbor with rent data available, showing a rent-to-price ratio of 0.082, or roughly $1,414 per month on a $206,762 median. That's a meaningfully better cash flow setup than Pendleton's current data supports, and a cash flow buyer should look hard at Daviess before paying the $34,000 price premium Pendleton carries. Where Pendleton wins is on appreciation score (82 versus no comparable figure provided for neighbors) and its national percentile rank. An investor whose primary thesis is price appreciation and who is comfortable with the liquidity constraints of a 14,638-person county has a reasonable case for Pendleton over its neighbors. Anyone who needs rental income to service the debt should start with Daviess or pull rent comps for Pendleton before assuming the appreciation score translates to a workable cash flow story.