Manitowoc County

Manitowoc County's rent-to-price ratio sits at 0.0504, which translates to a gross yield just above 6% annually before expenses. That sounds reasonable until you run the full stack: at a $264,380 purchase price with 20% down, the monthly mortgage at 6.85% comes to $1,386, and with $388 in estimated operating expenses on top of that, you're spending $1,774 per month to collect $1,110 in rent. The model produces a cash-on-cash return of negative 13.1% and a cap rate of 3.28%. Those numbers belong on an appreciation-focused market, not a cash-flow one, and the scoring confirms exactly that: Manitowoc posts a cash-flow score of 46 out of 100 alongside an appreciation score of 86, with home prices up 5.1% year-over-year. This is a market where you are banking on price growth to justify the carry, not on the income statement to pencil on day one.

That profile suits an appreciation-oriented buyer who has the liquidity to absorb negative monthly cash flow of $664 and believes 5.1% annual price appreciation will continue. It does not suit a cash-flow buyer unless they can locate properties well below the $264,380 median, bring more equity to compress the mortgage payment, or add value through renovation to push rents materially above the $1,110 median. A value-add operator who can buy distressed inventory at a 20-30% discount to median and reposition units to push rents into the $1,300-plus range has a better path to a workable return here than anyone buying at market. The affordability index of 73 and median price of $264,380 suggest the entry bar is not punishing by absolute terms, but the cap rate at 3.28% leaves almost no margin for error on expenses or vacancy.

The carry cost picture is made materially worse by Wisconsin's property tax environment. At a state-average effective rate of 1.85%, the annual property tax on a median-priced home comes to $4,891, and combined with $608 in annual insurance, the monthly tax-and-insurance load is $458. That is a real number that deserves its own line on your underwrite. At 1.85%, Wisconsin's state-average rate is high enough that it directly explains much of the cash-flow compression: nearly $5,500 per year in tax and insurance alone is a significant hurdle when gross rent is running at roughly $13,300 annually. Be aware this is a state-average estimate per the Tax Foundation's 2024 data, and county or township rates in Manitowoc may differ, so pull the actual assessed rate before finalizing any pro forma.

Manitowoc County sits on Lake Michigan, and with a population of 81,242, it is a mid-sized manufacturing and port community. No economic anchor data was provided for this county, so this analysis cannot speak to specific employers or job concentration. What the stability score of 50 does signal is a market that is neither particularly resilient nor particularly fragile, which for a buy-and-hold investor means you are accepting average occupancy risk without a deep economic moat to protect it.

The primary risk here is the combination of rate sensitivity and thin yield. At 6.85% financing, the math is already negative. Any softening in rent, increase in expenses, or extended vacancy period deepens the loss. The market's appreciation score of 86 implies the model sees price momentum, but 5.1% YoY appreciation on a negative-cash-flow asset means you are waiting for an exit or a refinance at lower rates to realize the return. If rates stay elevated, that thesis stalls. There is also concentration risk inherent in a small, manufacturing-oriented county with a single economic character: if the local industrial base contracts, both rents and prices come under pressure simultaneously.

Compared to the neighboring counties in the data, Manitowoc is a middle-of-the-pack performer. Its overall score of 62 matches Racine County exactly, and sits one point ahead of Outagamie, Winnebago, and Rock Counties. Milwaukee County scores 63 with a rent-to-price ratio of 0.0612 versus Manitowoc's 0.0504, a meaningful gap: Milwaukee delivers roughly 1.2 additional gross yield points on a comparable median price of $273,685. That makes Milwaukee the more defensible cash-flow bet among this peer group. Racine, at a 0.0537 ratio and the same overall score, also beats Manitowoc on yield efficiency. Outagamie and Winnebago both trail Manitowoc on rent-to-price, but Outagamie's $325,896 median makes entry more expensive. The case for choosing Manitowoc over its neighbors comes down to one factor: if you believe its appreciation score of 86 reflects a genuine price momentum story that the lower-scoring neighbors cannot match, and you have the liquidity to carry the negative cash flow, Manitowoc earns its place. If cash flow is your primary constraint, Milwaukee or Racine are the more sensible choices within this comparison set.