Harrison County

Harrison County's gross rent-to-price ratio sits at 8.15%, which is high enough to attract attention on paper. A $149,834 median home price against $1,017 in monthly rent puts this squarely on the cash-flow end of the spectrum, and the 5.3% cap rate confirms it: you're not buying a growth story, you're buying yield. The appreciation score of 60 and a year-over-year price gain of just 0.95% make that explicit. This is not a market where equity appreciation does the heavy lifting. The affordability index of 98 out of 100 tells you the entry bar is genuinely low, and the overall score of 71 ranks Harrison in the 82nd percentile nationally across 1,000 counties, which is a credible position for a market this inexpensive.

The tension in the underwrite is this: the gross metrics look good, but the model's base-case cash flow at 6.85% financing comes in at negative $124 per month, with a cash-on-cash return of -4.32%. That gap between a strong rent-to-price ratio and negative cash flow is almost entirely explained by the cost of leverage at current rates. A buyer who can put more than the modeled 20% down, pay cash, or acquire below the median price can close that gap. The cash-flow score of 81 reflects the structural yield available here, not necessarily what a leveraged buyer pockets at today's rates. Value-add operators who can buy distressed assets below median and force appreciation through renovation are the most natural fit. Pure appreciation buyers have little reason to be here given the 0.95% price growth. A cash buyer or low-leverage buyer hunting yield in an affordable market is the other profile that works.

On carry costs, the tax and insurance burden in Harrison is a genuine tailwind. West Virginia's state-average effective property tax rate is 0.59%, flagged as low, and combined with an insurance rate of 0.26%, the monthly tax-and-insurance load on a $149,834 asset comes to approximately $106. That is a meaningful underwriting advantage compared to markets where tax alone can run $300-$500 per month on a similar asset. To be precise, the 0.59% figure is a state-average estimate from Tax Foundation 2024 data, and actual Harrison County or township rates may differ, so confirm at the county assessor before closing. But even with some variance, this cost structure gives cash-flow buyers more room than they'd find in high-tax states at comparable price points.

The stability score of 50 is the number that deserves the most scrutiny. Harrison County is the Clarksburg, WV metro area, a small regional center in north-central West Virginia. At 65,862 residents, the population base is limited, which means rental demand is narrower and less diversified than in larger metros. West Virginia broadly faces long-term demographic headwinds, including population decline at the state level, and a market of this size can be sensitive to the loss or contraction of a single major employer. Concentration risk is real here. An investor running a single-asset or small portfolio strategy should underwrite conservatively on vacancy and factor in potential difficulty re-leasing if tenant quality declines or local employment softens.

Against its neighbors, Harrison offers the lowest median home price in the comparison set at $149,834, meaningfully below Taylor County ($185,741), Monroe County ($190,723), and Nicholas County ($158,409). Cabell County's rent-to-price ratio of 6.91% compares unfavorably to Harrison's 8.15%, and Cabell's median price is $166,212 with lower rent than Harrison at $956.85, which makes Harrison the sharper cash-flow play on the numbers. Summers County at $156,056 is closer in price but carries no rent data in the provided comparison. Taylor and Nicholas counties both score 73 overall versus Harrison's 71, a negligible difference. The case for choosing Harrison over any of these neighbors comes down to one thing: the lowest acquisition cost combined with the highest gross yield in the set. If your strategy is cash-flow-first at minimal capital outlay, Harrison is the correct choice among these options. If you want a larger population base or are prioritizing stability score, the data does not support a strong preference for any specific neighbor but does suggest Taylor and Nicholas carry modestly higher overall scores.