Florence County

Florence County sits at a gross rent-to-price ratio of 0.92% monthly, or roughly 11% annualized, which places it firmly on the cash-flow end of the spectrum. The modeled cap rate comes in at 6.0% on a $204,585 median purchase price against $1,574 in monthly rent, which is a legitimate yield for a secondary South Carolina market. Year-over-year home price growth of 4.04% adds a modest appreciation tailwind, so this is not purely a yield play, but it is not an appreciation market first, either. The tool's cash-on-cash estimate of -1.25% at a 6.85% financing rate and 20% down is worth examining carefully: that slight negative is the product of today's rate environment compressing leveraged returns almost everywhere, not a structural flaw in the market. The underlying economics, a median price under $205K and rents near $1,575, are genuinely favorable for investors who can reduce leverage, negotiate below-median prices, or use creative financing to improve their debt-service coverage.

The scores confirm the thesis. Florence ranks 14th nationally out of 1,000 counties analyzed, placing it in the 98th percentile, and it sits first among all 46 South Carolina counties. Its cash-flow score of 92 and affordability index of 86 tell you this is a market built for buy-and-hold investors prioritizing yield over appreciation optionality. An appreciation buyer can find better, but at a higher price-per-dollar-of-rent. A cash-flow buyer looking for sub-$210K acquisition prices with rent approaching $1,575 will struggle to beat Florence in South Carolina. The value-add operator also has a reasonable entry here: the affordability index of 86 and median price in the low $200s suggest room for forced appreciation through renovation in a market where comps are not so high that the upside is already priced in.

Florence County is anchored by McLeod Health, one of the largest independent health systems in South Carolina, along with manufacturing and distribution operations tied to the Pee Dee region's logistics infrastructure. Medical employment tends to generate stable, recession-resistant rental demand, particularly among traveling nurses, allied health staff, and administrative workers who are less likely to own and more likely to rent at the $1,400 to $1,700 price point this market supports. That concentration in healthcare is a double-edged consideration: it provides demand stability, but it also means any contraction in the health system would have an outsized effect on local employment and, by extension, tenant quality.

On carry costs, Florence is a genuine tailwind. South Carolina's state-average effective property tax rate is 0.57%, flagged as low, which is a meaningful underwriting advantage. Combined with an insurance rate of 0.34%, the all-in monthly tax and insurance load on the median property runs approximately $155. That figure is baked into the $551 estimated expense number in the model and is one of the cleaner carry-cost profiles in the Southeast. The caveat worth keeping in mind is that 0.57% is a state-average estimate from Tax Foundation 2024 data, and actual county and township assessments in Florence may differ from that figure, so confirm the real bill on any specific address before finalizing your underwrite. That said, even with modest variance, South Carolina's property tax structure is structurally favorable relative to Ohio, Texas, Illinois, or New Jersey markets that often carry 1.5% to 2.5%+ effective rates.

The stability score of 50 is the data point that demands attention. In a county with otherwise strong cash-flow and affordability metrics, a stability score at the median nationally signals something worth investigating at the ground level: likely a combination of population size (137,015 is a smaller base), economic concentration, and Pee Dee region income demographics. Investors should underwrite for higher vacancy reserves than they might use in a more diversified MSA, and should focus acquisitions on neighborhoods with demonstrated rental demand rather than assuming the county-level rent figure applies uniformly to every submarket.

Against neighbors, Florence is clearly the preferred market for yield-focused investors. Richland County (Columbia) prices at $238,959 with a rent-to-price ratio of 0.078% monthly, nearly 20% lower than Florence's 0.092%. Aiken County is similarly priced at $226,755 with a 0.078% ratio. Dillon County is cheaper at $144,875 but carries an overall score of 77 versus Florence's 78, and likely reflects more constrained tenant demand at that price point. Orangeburg County's rent-to-price ratio of 0.092% is nearly identical to Florence's, but its overall score of 64 versus Florence's 78 suggests worse fundamentals on stability or appreciation. If you are choosing between these markets, Florence is the pick when yield, affordability, and overall market quality all need to clear the bar simultaneously. Richland makes more sense if you are willing to trade yield for a larger, more diversified economic base and greater liquidity on exit.