Saint Tammany Parish

Saint Tammany Parish sits at a gross rent-to-price ratio of 6.47%, which lands it on the appreciation side of the cash-flow/appreciation spectrum, though not by a comfortable margin. At the modeled purchase price of $283,848 with 20% down at 6.85%, the monthly mortgage runs $1,488 against $1,531 in median rent. Once you layer in $536 in estimated operating expenses, the model spits out negative $493 in monthly cash flow and a cash-on-cash return of -9.06%. The cap rate of 4.21% is below the cost of debt, which is the mechanical reason levered returns go negative. Year-over-year home price appreciation of just 0.15% offers no near-term offset. This is not a market where the numbers currently work on a standard leveraged acquisition at median price.

That framing tells you who this market is not for right now: the cash-flow buyer underwriting a stabilized rental at today's rates and median pricing will struggle to make this pencil. The cash-flow score of 65 out of 100 suggests there are pockets of the parish where yields are more favorable than the median implies, so a value-add operator who can buy below median, force equity through renovation, and push rents above the $1,531 median has a better entry path than a turnkey buyer. The appreciation score of 52 is roughly neutral, consistent with a market that hasn't demonstrated a durable price-growth trend. An affordability index of 69, above the midpoint, means the owner-occupant buyer pool is still active enough to support eventual exit liquidity, which matters if you're acquiring distressed assets and planning a two-to-five-year hold before disposition.

The combined monthly tax and insurance figure here is actually a tailwind worth noting explicitly. Louisiana's state-average effective property tax rate of 0.55% is low, and the data flags it accordingly. Annualized, that translates to $1,561 in property tax and $1,873 in insurance, totaling $286 per month combined, which is a real line-item advantage relative to most markets at this price point. The caveat applies: that rate is a state-average estimate per the Tax Foundation's 2024 figures, and actual assessments at the county or township level will differ, so confirm the specific parcel's assessed value and millage rate before finalizing your underwrite. On the insurance side, Louisiana coastal exposure means the $1,873 annual figure deserves scrutiny. Depending on proximity to the coast, wind and flood policies can push well beyond a statewide average, so itemize your actual insurance quotes as a separate exercise.

The specific risk worth flagging in Saint Tammany is geographic and climate-related concentration. The parish sits north of Lake Pontchartrain and has been directly in the path of Gulf storms, with Hurricane Ida in 2021 causing significant damage across the region. That exposure affects insurance availability and pricing, tenant demand during displacement events, and long-term capital appreciation in certain zip codes. This is a concentration risk that a diversified investor adding a second or third Louisiana property should weight carefully. The stability score of 50 out of 100 reflects that this market does not offer the demand-floor consistency of a more insulated inland metro.

Compared to the neighboring parishes in the data set, Saint Tammany's rent-to-price ratio of 6.47% is the lowest of the group with available rent figures. Terrebonne Parish posts an 8.56% gross yield at a median price of $173,690, Ouachita Parish comes in at 7.01% on a $172,866 median, and East Baton Rouge runs 6.84% at $227,649. All four carry identical overall scores of 59, meaning the composite model sees them as equivalent on a blended basis, but the underlying mechanics differ meaningfully. If pure yield is the objective, Terrebonne offers the highest ratio in the set at a lower entry price, though its own coastal and energy-sector risks require separate diligence. If an investor wants a higher-priced, more supply-constrained suburban market with a larger owner-occupant buyer pool as an exit backstop, Saint Tammany's $283,848 median and 266,168 population give it more depth than the smaller parishes. The right choice between Saint Tammany and its neighbors comes down to strategy: operators hunting yield and willing to accept more economic concentration should look at Terrebonne or Ouachita first; investors prioritizing a larger, more liquid resale market with lower property taxes who can underwrite to a longer hold or below-median acquisition price will find Saint Tammany the more defensible option.