Henry County

Henry County, Tennessee posts a 2.96% cap rate and a gross rent-to-price ratio of 0.46% per month (4.56% annualized) at a median home price of $223,683 and median rent of $850. Those numbers put it squarely in appreciation territory, not cash-flow territory. The model underwrite at 6.85% interest produces a monthly mortgage of $1,173, and after adding $298 in estimated operating expenses, the position bleeds $621 per month. Cash-on-cash comes out at negative 14.48% on a $44,737 down payment. This is not a market you buy for day-one income; it's a market you buy because prices rose nearly 8% year-over-year and you believe that trajectory has legs.

The appreciation score of 95 out of 100 is the headline here, and it's the only reason a disciplined investor opens the file. The cash-flow score of 38 and a stability score of 50 tell you the other side of the ledger plainly. An appreciation buyer who can absorb a monthly carry deficit and is underwriting to a 3-5 year exit will find the price point accessible, a $223,683 median means you're not competing with institutional capital chasing gateway markets. A cash-flow buyer has no business here at current rents and rates: the rent-to-price ratio at 4.56% annualized doesn't clear the threshold most cash-flow operators require, and the negative cash-on-cash number isn't a rounding error you tune away with a slightly better deal. A value-add operator could explore whether forced appreciation through renovation unlocks rent growth that closes the gap, but the median rent of $850 suggests a market ceiling that would require meaningful evidence before underwriting to rents materially above that figure.

The combined monthly tax and insurance burden is $199, which is part of the $298 in estimated expenses baked into the model. Tennessee's state-average effective property tax rate is 0.71%, which the Tax Foundation categorizes as normal, and actual county and township rates may differ from that state-level estimate. At 0.71% on a $223,683 purchase that produces annual tax of roughly $1,588, this isn't a tailwind that saves the cash-flow story, but it isn't the kind of punishing tax burden you'd see in Illinois or New Jersey either. Insurance runs approximately $805 annually at the 0.36% rate used here. Neither figure alone is a deal-breaker; together they're just another reminder that the unit economics only work if rent grows or you're playing for appreciation.

Henry County's population of 32,305 and affordability index of 82 point to a smaller, relatively affordable market. At 65th percentile nationally and ranked 17th out of 95 Tennessee counties overall, it sits in the upper half of state markets by this scoring system but doesn't lead the pack. The stability score of 50 warrants attention: mid-table stability in a small county means rental demand could be more volatile than in a larger metro with a diversified employer base. No economic anchor data was provided for this county, so employer concentration and job market depth can't be assessed from this dataset and should be investigated independently before committing capital.

Compared to the neighboring counties in the dataset, Henry's cash-flow profile is the weakest of those with rent data available. Anderson County (rent-to-price ratio of 6.36% annualized, overall score 62), Greene County (6.52% annualized, score 62), and Shelby County (7.58% annualized, score 61) all deliver meaningfully better rent-to-price ratios at comparable or slightly lower overall scores. If monthly income coverage is the priority, any of those three counties outperforms Henry on that metric, with Shelby County's 7.58% annualized ratio particularly standing out for a cash-flow operator. Carroll County's lower median of $180,314 could indicate a cheaper entry point, though no rent data was provided to evaluate its ratio. Rhea County scores 68 overall, the highest in this peer group, and merits a separate look. You'd choose Henry over these neighbors specifically when you're conviction-shopping the appreciation trade: an 8% price gain in the trailing year and a 95/100 appreciation score in a sub-$225K market is a harder combination to find in the neighbors listed. The cost of that conviction is a $621 monthly deficit that you need cash reserves and a clear exit thesis to carry.