Before you read the numbers: these figures assume every home is rent-ready. ApriFind doesn't have condition data yet, so repairs needed to reach these rents are not included, and the cheapest homes are the most likely to need them. Property tax uses each city's published tax rate for rental (investor-owned) property, not each property's actual bill. See What these numbers assume.
Which large US cities still work for rental cash flow at today's interest rates? To find out, we took the 50 largest US metro areas (US Census Bureau 2025 estimates), searched the main city of each, and ran every active for-sale listing through the same rental analysis, with the same assumptions, on the same day: October 9, 2026. That's 157,457 listings. Then we counted how many show positive cash flow.
Key takeaways
- Cleveland and Detroit lead: 58% and 50% of listings show positive cash flow at 20% down and 7% interest. Birmingham (36%), Memphis (33%), and St. Louis (32%) come next.
- Only 10 of the 50 cities reach 20% or more, and all are older cities in the Midwest, Northeast, and South: Milwaukee, Philadelphia, Baltimore, Pittsburgh, and Chicago complete the list. No city in the West comes close.
- In 15 cities, about 1% of listings or fewer cash-flow, including Austin, Nashville, Denver, Phoenix, Seattle, Las Vegas, San Diego, and San Jose. All have median list prices of $335,000 or more.
- Small multi-family buildings change the picture. 2–4 unit buildings cash-flow far more often than houses: 80% in Cleveland, 68% in Milwaukee, and 61% in Chicago.
- Cash flow concentrates in weaker neighborhoods. In Detroit, 99% of cash-flowing listings are in areas with an Apri Score of 6–10 (10 = weakest). Birmingham, Pittsburgh, and Chicago are the most balanced.
City deep dives: returns by ZIP code, property type, and neighborhood for each of the top 15: Cleveland, Detroit, Birmingham, Memphis, St. Louis, Milwaukee, Philadelphia, Baltimore, Pittsburgh, Chicago, Hartford, Kansas City, Louisville, Minneapolis, and Indianapolis.
Share of listings with positive cash flow, by city
The main city of each of the 50 largest US metro areas, ranked by the share of listings with positive cash flow.
| # | City | Metro size rank | Listings analyzed | Median list price | Median est. rent | Median cap rate | Listings that cash-flow |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cleveland, OH | 35 | 1,429 | $149,900 | $1,600 | 7.4% | 58% |
| 2 | Detroit, MI | 14 | 2,864 | $125,000 | $1,400 | 6.4% | 50% |
| 3 | Birmingham, AL | 48 | 1,244 | $179,450 | $1,298 | 4.8% | 36% |
| 4 | Memphis, TN | 45 | 2,678 | $179,900 | $1,400 | 4.9% | 33% |
| 5 | St. Louis, MO | 23 | 2,030 | $199,900 | $1,598 | 4.6% | 32% |
| 6 | Milwaukee, WI | 41 | 989 | $229,900 | $1,825 | 4.3% | 29% |
| 7 | Philadelphia, PA | 9 | 5,619 | $280,000 | $1,900 | 4.4% | 28% |
| 8 | Baltimore, MD | 22 | 3,240 | $250,000 | $2,053 | 4.4% | 28% |
| 9 | Pittsburgh, PA | 28 | 2,277 | $269,900 | $1,800 | 4.2% | 23% |
| 10 | Chicago, IL | 3 | 3,695 | $399,500 | $2,900 | 3.7% | 22% |
| 11 | Hartford, CT | 50 | 101 | $330,000 | $2,520 | 3.9% | 17% |
| 12 | Kansas City, MO | 31 | 1,792 | $285,000 | $1,709 | 3.2% | 13% |
| 13 | Louisville, KY | 43 | 2,477 | $280,000 | $1,722 | 4.1% | 12% |
| 14 | Minneapolis, MN | 16 | 1,270 | $339,900 | $2,300 | 2.9% | 11% |
| 15 | Indianapolis, IN | 33 | 3,727 | $259,000 | $1,792 | 3.2% | 9% |
| 16 | Cincinnati, OH | 30 | 1,438 | $309,900 | $1,972 | 2.6% | 9% |
| 17 | Columbus, OH | 32 | 2,005 | $274,900 | $1,797 | 3.1% | 9% |
| 18 | Atlanta, GA | 6 | 4,927 | $379,000 | $2,436 | 3.0% | 8% |
| 19 | Oklahoma City, OK | 42 | 2,242 | $274,900 | $1,638 | 3.5% | 8% |
| 20 | Jacksonville, FL | 38 | 4,099 | $299,999 | $1,914 | 3.3% | 7% |
| 21 | Houston, TX | 5 | 8,441 | $325,000 | $2,290 | 3.2% | 7% |
| 22 | New York, NY | 1 | 16,149 | $930,000 | $4,775 | 2.1% | 6% |
| 23 | Virginia Beach, VA | 37 | 1,139 | $475,000 | $2,672 | 3.9% | 5% |
| 24 | Dallas, TX | 4 | 4,393 | $425,000 | $2,600 | 2.5% | 5% |
| 25 | Providence, RI | 39 | 362 | $599,900 | $3,650 | 3.1% | 4% |
| 26 | San Francisco, CA | 13 | 902 | $1,382,500 | $6,798 | 2.4% | 4% |
| 27 | San Antonio, TX | 24 | 8,653 | $299,999 | $1,808 | 2.2% | 4% |
| 28 | Los Angeles, CA | 2 | 3,843 | $1,168,000 | $4,997 | 1.7% | 3% |
| 29 | Washington, DC | 7 | 2,588 | $622,250 | $3,381 | 2.7% | 3% |
| 30 | Charlotte, NC | 21 | 4,157 | $415,630 | $2,245 | 3.3% | 2% |
| 31 | Boston, MA | 11 | 2,102 | $899,000 | $4,290 | 2.2% | 2% |
| 32 | Tampa, FL | 17 | 3,271 | $435,000 | $2,538 | 2.5% | 2% |
| 33 | Miami, FL | 8 | 7,402 | $645,000 | $3,800 | 2.0% | 2% |
| 34 | Richmond, VA | 44 | 632 | $389,450 | $2,220 | 3.2% | 2% |
| 35 | Sacramento, CA | 27 | 1,723 | $515,000 | $2,625 | 2.9% | 2% |
| 36 | Grand Rapids, MI | 49 | 713 | $335,000 | $2,195 | 2.0% | 1% |
| 37 | Fresno, CA | 47 | 1,044 | $439,525 | $2,398 | 3.0% | 1% |
| 38 | Denver, CO | 19 | 3,950 | $525,000 | $2,660 | 2.7% | 1% |
| 39 | Phoenix, AZ | 10 | 3,423 | $458,000 | $2,294 | 2.6% | 1% |
| 40 | Raleigh, NC | 40 | 2,227 | $425,000 | $2,095 | 2.9% | 1% |
| 41 | Riverside, CA | 12 | 580 | $713,945 | $3,510 | 2.6% | 1% |
| 42 | Orlando, FL | 20 | 3,933 | $389,000 | $2,304 | 2.3% | 1% |
| 43 | Nashville, TN | 34 | 3,644 | $575,000 | $2,800 | 2.5% | 0% |
| 44 | Austin, TX | 25 | 4,633 | $499,500 | $2,482 | 1.4% | 0% |
| 45 | San Diego, CA | 18 | 2,479 | $876,000 | $3,900 | 1.8% | 0% |
| 46 | Portland, OR | 26 | 2,962 | $539,000 | $2,768 | 1.1% | 0% |
| 47 | Salt Lake City, UT | 46 | 855 | $579,990 | $2,482 | 2.4% | 0% |
| 48 | Las Vegas, NV | 29 | 7,017 | $469,900 | $2,207 | 2.2% | 0% |
| 49 | Seattle, WA | 15 | 2,952 | $759,630 | $3,300 | 1.9% | 0% |
| 50 | San Jose, CA | 36 | 1,145 | $1,250,000 | $4,448 | 1.2% | 0% |
Notes. Metro size rank is the metro area's population rank (US Census Bureau, July 2025). For each metro we searched its first-named city, such as Dallas for Dallas–Fort Worth. A city's listings are those with that city in their address, which in a few places, such as St. Louis, includes areas just outside the city limits. New York combines the five boroughs; Queens covers listings within five miles of its center. Co-op monthly maintenance fees aren't in our data, so New York's figures are, if anything, optimistic. Hartford had only 101 qualifying listings, so its figures are less stable than those of larger cities. Median estimated rent is the median of each listing's estimated rent; multi-family rent is for the whole building.
How to read this
A high share isn't a buy signal. In every city, the listings that cash-flow are overwhelmingly the cheapest ones, and those are the homes most likely to need repairs before they can earn these rents. A 58% cash-flow rate in Cleveland means a large pool of candidates worth investigating, not a guaranteed return.
A low share doesn't make a city a bad investment. In Austin, Nashville, and Seattle, investors are generally betting on appreciation rather than monthly cash flow. That's a different strategy, with different risks.
Taxes change the ranking. Detroit's effective tax rate on rental property is 3.70%, the highest of any large US city in the Lincoln Institute's 2025 study, and it still ranks second. Birmingham is the opposite case: its taxes are low, but Alabama assesses rental property at twice the ratio of owner-occupied homes, so an investor's tax bill there is roughly double a homeowner's. Memphis benefits from how Tennessee classifies rentals: a rented house is taxed at the residential rate, about 1.32% of market value, while a building with more than one rental unit is taxed as commercial property.
Property type matters as much as the city. In Philadelphia and Baltimore, rowhouses do most of the work: 32% and 38% of townhouse listings cash-flow, against 28% citywide in each. In Chicago, it's two- and three-flats.
Cash flow and neighborhood quality
Strong cash flow and strong neighborhoods rarely come together. To show how much, we grouped every listing by its Apri Score, ApriFind's proprietary 1-to-10 neighborhood rating built from census-level socioeconomic data including income, education, employment, and housing quality. It compares each neighborhood with others in the same state: 1 is among the strongest, 10 among the weakest. It's built to show, before you make an offer, whether a high return comes with a weaker location. See the Apri Score for every listing in any city.
Share of listings with positive cash flow, by Apri Score, in the cities where at least a fifth of listings cash-flow:
| City | Apri Score 1–3 | Apri Score 4–7 | Apri Score 8–10 | Cash-flowing listings in areas scoring 1–5 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cleveland, OH | 9% | 20% | 69% | 3% |
| Detroit, MI | 1% | 20% | 56% | 1% |
| Birmingham, AL | 10% | 46% | 57% | 28% |
| Memphis, TN | 3% | 28% | 55% | 11% |
| St. Louis, MO | 6% | 22% | 71% | 14% |
| Milwaukee, WI | 2% | 10% | 46% | 3% |
| Philadelphia, PA | 4% | 13% | 44% | 9% |
| Baltimore, MD | 3% | 8% | 39% | 4% |
| Pittsburgh, PA | 6% | 22% | 54% | 26% |
| Chicago, IL | 6% | 20% | 50% | 23% |
In every city, the share of listings that cash-flow climbs steeply as the Apri Score rises toward 10, and so do cap rates: in Cleveland, the median cap rate is 2.1% in Apri Score 1–3 areas and 8.1% in 8–10 areas. Part of a high cap rate is compensation for location risk, such as more tenant turnover, longer vacancies, collection problems, older housing, and slower appreciation, which a uniform vacancy assumption doesn't capture.
Birmingham is the most balanced market here: almost half of its listings in middle-scoring (4–7) areas cash-flow on paper, and 28% of its cash-flowing listings are in areas scoring 1–5. Pittsburgh (26%) and Chicago (23%) follow. In Detroit, Cleveland, Milwaukee, and Baltimore, 96–99% of cash flow is in areas scoring 6–10.
What makes a market work for cash flow
- Purchase price relative to rent. The single biggest driver in our data.
- Property taxes on rental property. These vary several-fold between cities and are usually higher than owner-occupied rates.
- Insurance cost and availability, especially in coastal and disaster-prone areas.
- Demand: employment, population, and local vacancy.
- Neighborhood quality. Within a city, the highest yields are usually in the weakest areas. Decide how much location risk you'll accept before comparing returns.
- Local rules: rental licensing, inspections, rent control, and landlord-tenant law. Check current state and local sources rather than relying on general labels.
How to evaluate a market yourself
- Pick three to five candidate cities that fit your budget.
- Use the same financing and expense assumptions in each.
- Look at the whole market, not just the apparent bargains.
- Check estimated rents against comparable rentals.
- Compare cash flow, cap rate, and cash-on-cash return.
- Stress-test rent, vacancy, repairs, insurance, and taxes.
- Research neighborhoods and talk to local professionals before making an offer.
ApriFind does steps 2–5 in a single search, and rates every listing's neighborhood with the Apri Score: enter a city and it analyzes every active listing with your assumptions.
What these numbers assume
- Rent-ready condition. Rent estimates come from comparable rentals currently on the market, which are homes in rentable condition. ApriFind doesn't have condition data yet, so the cost of making a property rent-ready is not included.
- Some listings excluded. We left out 4,700 listings priced far below similar listings nearby, or whose estimated rent was far above what similar listings nearby earn (often shells, auction starting bids, co-ops, or buildings with rent-controlled tenants), along with vacant land. This "Verify condition" flag is a rough filter; it can't detect a property's actual condition.
- Property tax. We use published effective tax rates for rental (investor-owned) property. For 38 cities, that's the city's rate from the Lincoln Institute's 2025 study. For 9 cities, we use each city's own published rate, either because the study doesn't cover the city or, in Memphis, because its rental figure reflects apartment buildings, which Tennessee taxes at a higher ratio than rented houses, listed under Local tax rate sources. For Grand Rapids and Riverside, where we found no published city-level rate, we use the state average for rental property, and New York uses a mix of city and state rates. Your parcel's actual rate can differ.
- Financing and expenses. 20% down, 7.0% 30-year fixed mortgage, 5% vacancy, 10% property management, 10% maintenance, insurance, and HOA dues where listed.
- Asking, market-rate rents. Estimates are based on advertised rents, which can run above signed leases. In cities with rent control, such as New York, Los Angeles, and San Francisco, a building with existing tenants may earn far less than market rent.
- One point in time. Active listings on October 9, 2026. Listings and rates change daily.
Search any city on ApriFind to see today's listings with your own assumptions.
Local tax rate sources
Published rates used in place of the Lincoln Institute's study:
- Birmingham, AL: 1.45%. Alabama Department of Revenue, 2025 Millage Rates (October 2025), Jefferson County: state 6.5 + county 13.5 + Birmingham school districts 24.0 + City of Birmingham 28.5 = 72.5 mills, applied to the 20% assessment ratio for Class II property (Code of Alabama 40-8-1). Source
- Cincinnati, OH: 2.42%. Hamilton County Auditor, Rates of Taxation for Taxes Paid in 2025 (tax year 2024): Cincinnati residential/agricultural effective rate 69.14 mills, applied to Ohio's 35% assessment ratio. Source
- Cleveland, OH: 2.29%. Cuyahoga County Fiscal Officer, Rates of Taxation for Tax Year 2024 Due in 2025: Cleveland, residential/agricultural, tax as a percentage of market value. Source
- Hartford, CT: 2.53%. City of Hartford FY2026 mill rate of 68.95 (Hartford Tax Collector), applied to Hartford's residential assessment ratio of 36.75% of fair market value (as reported by Smart MLS; Hartford is the only Connecticut municipality with a separate residential ratio, per CT Office of Legislative Research report 2023-R-0006). Source
- Memphis, TN: 1.32%. Shelby County Trustee, 2026 tax rates: City of Memphis $2.58081 + Shelby County $2.702382 = $5.283192 per $100 of assessed value, applied to Tennessee's 25% assessment ratio for residential property, which includes a rented house (Tenn. Code Ann. 67-5-801). Buildings with more than one rental unit are assessed as commercial property at 40%, about 2.11%. Source
- Orlando, FL: 1.81%. Orange County Property Appraiser, 2025 Final Millage Rates: City of Orlando total 18.0878 mills (county, city, school, and special districts), on just value for non-homestead property. Source
- Pittsburgh, PA: 1.30%. Allegheny County Treasurer, 2026 millage: Allegheny County 6.43 + City of Pittsburgh 9.67 + Pittsburgh School District 10.25 = 26.35 mills on assessed value, converted to market value with the State Tax Equalization Board common level ratio for Allegheny County (49.3%, in effect July 2026-June 2027). Source
- Richmond, VA: 1.20%. City of Richmond, real estate tax rate $1.20 per $100 of assessed value (Virginia assesses at 100% of fair market value); FY2026 budget and ORD. 2025-207. Source
- St. Louis, MO: 1.56%. City of St. Louis Assessor, 2025 Tax Rates: residential total $8.1867 per $100 of assessed value, applied to Missouri's 19% residential assessment ratio (RSMo 137.115). Source
FAQ
Which US cities are best for rental property cash flow in 2026? Among the main cities of the 50 largest US metro areas, Cleveland (58% of listings with positive cash flow) and Detroit (50%) led in our October 2026 analysis, followed by Birmingham (36%), Memphis (33%), and St. Louis (32%), at 20% down and 7% interest. Those figures assume rent-ready homes.
Which of the largest US cities have the best rental cash flow? Among the main cities of the 10 largest metro areas, Philadelphia (28% of listings with positive cash flow) and Chicago (22%) stand out. In Houston, Atlanta, New York, Dallas, Los Angeles, Washington, Miami, and Phoenix, 9% or fewer of listings cash-flow at 7% interest.
Why don't rental properties cash-flow in cities like Austin, Nashville, or Seattle? Prices are high relative to rents. Median list prices of $500,000–$760,000 against median rents of $2,500–$3,300 leave little room after a 7% mortgage, taxes, and other costs. In our data, fewer than 1% of listings in those cities showed positive cash flow.
Do cash-flowing rentals tend to be in weaker neighborhoods? Yes, in most cities. In our data, listings in areas with an Apri Score of 8–10 (ApriFind's 1-to-10 neighborhood rating, where 10 is weakest) were far more likely to cash-flow than those in areas scoring 1–3: 69% vs 9% in Cleveland and 71% vs 6% in St. Louis. Birmingham was the most balanced, with almost half of listings in middle-scoring (4–7) areas cash-flowing.
Is the 1% rule still realistic in 2026? Rarely in large cities. Only in Detroit and Cleveland does the median listing's estimated rent reach about 1.1% of its list price. In the other 48 cities in our data, it's under 1%.
How did you choose these cities? They're the main city of each of the 50 largest US metropolitan areas by population, using US Census Bureau estimates for July 2025. We didn't add or remove any city.
ApriFind provides informational tools only and does not provide investment, financial, legal, or tax advice. Figures are estimates from listing data on one date; actual results vary.