Trempealeau County

Trempealeau County scores an 88 on appreciation and a 0 on cash flow, which tells you almost everything you need to know before running a single number. At a median home price of $283,170 and a 5.77% year-over-year price gain, this is a market where values are moving, but the spread between purchase price and rental income is not generating day-one cash flow at a 6.85% rate. The cap rate and cash-on-cash return both come in at effectively zero based on current estimates, placing Trempealeau squarely on the appreciation end of the spectrum. The affordability index of 69 out of 100 signals that prices have moved faster than local incomes can comfortably absorb, which is a useful context when modeling rent growth, since tenants in a 30,679-person county have real limits on what they can pay.

This market is not built for the cash-flow buyer right now. If your underwriting requires positive monthly returns from day one at current financing rates, the numbers do not support an entry here without a below-market acquisition or significant value-add angle. The appreciation buyer, particularly one with a 5-to-10-year horizon, has a more defensible thesis given the 5.77% price growth, provided they can carry a neutral or slightly negative position during the hold. A value-add operator who can force equity through renovation and reposition units at higher rents has the best shot at making the math work, but even that strategy depends on finding assets priced below the $283,170 median, where the margin for error is thin. At this price point and population size, deal volume is limited, so sourcing is a real constraint.

Trempealeau County sits in western Wisconsin along the Mississippi River, a geography that drives recreational and tourism-adjacent demand. No economic anchor data was provided for this county, so specific employer concentration or job sector analysis cannot be made here. What the population figure does suggest is that this is a small market without the institutional rental demand or employer diversity that buffers vacancy in a downturn. Stability scores at 50 out of 100, a middling number that reflects neither the resilience of a mid-sized metro nor the outright fragility of a deeply rural county. Rental demand here is real but thin, and any single employer exit or demographic shift would be felt at the asset level faster than in a larger market.

The tax and insurance burden deserves its own line on your underwrite. At a state-average effective property tax rate of 1.85%, Wisconsin is in the high category, and on a $283,170 purchase that translates to roughly $5,239 in annual property taxes. Add $651 in estimated annual insurance and you are looking at $491 per month in combined tax and insurance carry before you account for mortgage, maintenance, or vacancy. That $491 figure is a real drag on an already thin or flat cash flow position and should be stress-tested in your model. Keep in mind that 1.85% is a state-average estimate from Tax Foundation 2024 data, and your actual county or township rate may differ meaningfully in either direction. Verify the specific parcel-level rate before closing.

The concentrated risk profile here is primarily demographic and market-size risk. A county of 30,679 people has a shallow tenant pool, limited rent comparables, and lower transaction liquidity if you need to exit. There is no data here to support or refute specific vacancy or regulatory risk, so those would need to be investigated locally, particularly around any short-term rental ordinances given the river corridor tourism element.

Against its neighbors, Trempealeau holds a slightly elevated median price at $283,170 compared to Pepin County at $267,147, Marquette at $257,231, Lincoln at $237,321, and Marinette at $205,028, while matching closely with Oconto at $289,938. All five neighboring counties score between 69 and 72 overall versus Trempealeau's 71, so there is no standout competitor on the composite score. The case for choosing Trempealeau over a neighbor comes down to its 88 appreciation score, which is likely the highest in this peer group given the price growth rate. If appreciation is the primary objective and you can carry the position, Trempealeau makes sense over lower-priced neighbors like Marinette or Lincoln where price trajectory may be flatter. If you need lower basis and more immediate cash flow viability, Marinette at $205,028 gives you roughly $78,000 less in purchase price to work with, which at 6.85% changes the monthly carrying cost picture materially. Choose Trempealeau when you are buying the appreciation story and can hold through the carry cost; choose Marinette or Lincoln when the monthly math has to work from year one.