Rock County

Rock County, Wisconsin sits at a gross rent-to-price ratio of 5.22%, which translates to a 3.39% cap rate at current prices. That gap between gross yield and cap rate tells you something important: once you layer in expenses, the math gets thin fast. The model underwrite, using a $296,846 purchase price, 20% down, and a 6.85% rate, produces a monthly mortgage of $1,556 against median rent of $1,292. Before you even account for vacancy or capital expenditure, you're underwater on cash flow by $716 per month, and the cash-on-cash return sits at negative 12.58%. The appreciation score of 90 out of 100, paired with 6.23% year-over-year home price growth, tells you where this market's real story is. This is not a cash-flow market at current financing rates. It is an appreciation market with a price point, $296,846 median, that remains accessible relative to many comparable metros.

That framing should directly determine which investor type belongs here. If you're a cash-flow buyer expecting the rent check to cover the carry from day one, Rock County at these numbers does not pencil. The cash-flow score of 48 is honest about that. The investor this market suits is one who is comfortable running a negative monthly spread while betting on continued price appreciation, or who can bring a larger down payment to reduce the debt service and close the cash-flow gap meaningfully. A value-add operator who can acquire below-median, force appreciation through renovation, and refinance into a higher rent could also make this work, but they need to model carefully, because the spread between expenses and rent leaves very little cushion even in that scenario. The affordability index of 66 and median price under $300,000 do suggest that deal flow exists at prices that are lower than the median, which is where value-add entry points would live.

The property tax situation deserves its own line on your underwrite. Wisconsin's state-average effective property tax rate used in this analysis is 1.85%, which is high enough to change the outcome on a deal. At that rate, annual taxes on a $296,846 home run approximately $5,492. Combined with estimated insurance of $683 annually, you are carrying $515 per month in tax and insurance alone before debt service or any other expense. That is not a rounding error. It is a structural cost that compresses cap rates across the entire state, and Rock County does not escape it. Use the 1.85% figure as your baseline, but confirm at the county and township level before closing, as actual assessed rates can differ materially from the state average, and Wisconsin's levy structure means local variation is real and meaningful.

The primary risk in Rock County is concentration and stability. The stability score of 50 is middling, and with a county population of 163,817, the market is large enough to avoid being a single-employer town but not so diversified that any major economic shift wouldn't move vacancy. No economic anchor data was provided, so no specific employer commentary is warranted here. What the numbers do reflect is that this is not a high-stability market despite reasonable size, and investors should underwrite conservatively on vacancy and tenant turnover. The 50 stability score, combined with thin cash flow at market rents, means a 30 to 60 day vacancy on a single-family rental can wipe out quarters of theoretical equity accumulation.

Compared to its neighbors, Rock County's investment case is clearer when you look at what you're getting relative to the alternatives. Milwaukee County offers a higher gross yield at 6.12% rent-to-price versus Rock's 5.22%, and median rent of $1,396 versus $1,292, which makes Milwaukee more competitive on cash flow for investors willing to take on the urban risk profile that Milwaukee's market carries. Racine County is the closest comparable, with a median price of $294,560 and rent-to-price of 5.37%, essentially identical to Rock on yield with a nearly matching price point. Green County comes in at 5.74% yield but with a higher median price of $334,485, making entry more expensive for less proportional rent. Manitowoc County and Wood County both have lower absolute prices and lower rents, with Wood at $215,899 median and a 5.02% yield, which does not move the cash-flow needle enough to justify the likely lower appreciation trajectory. The reason to choose Rock over these neighbors is specific: its appreciation score of 90 is the highest in this peer group, and its 6.23% year-over-year price growth likely reflects genuine demand dynamics that the neighboring counties are not matching at the same rate. If your thesis is equity accumulation with a long hold, Rock County is the strongest play in this comparison set. If cash flow is the priority, Milwaukee County's yield and rent level make it the more defensible choice despite its own complications.