Buffalo’s Zillow ZHVI is $251,203 and ZORI is $1,430 per month. Their 6.8% gross yield is annual ZORI divided by ZHVI before taxes, insurance, repairs, management, vacancy, utilities and financing. Both measures rose year over year, but rent growth trailed value growth. The Zillow value equals 5.0x ACS median household income, while annual ZORI equals 34.3% of that income; both are citywide affordability screens, not a borrower budget or property cash flow.
ACS counts 136,850 city housing units; 12.6% are vacant, and renters occupy 57.0% of occupied units. ACS median owner-reported value is $164,200, while median gross rent is $1,046, including contract rent and selected utilities. These occupied-housing survey measures differ in concept and period from Zillow’s typical value and observed market rent; averaging them or calling the gap appreciation would be invalid. Median year built is 1938, a prompt for property inspection, not proof of any building’s condition or cost.
City rent-burden context shows 52.3% of measured renters spend at least 30% of income on gross rent. Single-family homes are 39.5% of units and large multifamily buildings are 10.7%; structure shares are not purchasable supply. Only 17.9% of vacant units are listed for rent, so total vacancy is not immediately leasable inventory. Population increased 7.9% between overlapping ACS vintages; the change is not annualized and may reflect boundaries. Median household income is $50,041, poverty is 26.0%, and unemployment is 7.3%—demand constraints that do not establish cause, leasing speed or tenant performance.
In Erie County, the property-tax rate is 1.98%, a carry-cost input that does not state Buffalo parcel taxes. In the broader Buffalo metro, payroll jobs rose 0.6% year over year and months’ supply was 2.6; both are metro conditions, not city demand or inventory. Nationally, Freddie Mac’s 30-year mortgage rate was 6.6%, a financing backdrop rather than a city or borrower quote.
Underwriting is limited by citywide typicals, ACS sampling and mismatched periods, plus county and metro indicators with different denominators. A property still needs its asking price, in-place rent, leases, utility responsibility, parcel tax bill, insurance quote, financing terms and realistic vacancy, management, maintenance and capital reserves. Verify unit legality, title and zoning; inspect structure, mechanicals and hazard exposure; and compare truly similar sales and rentals. Recalculate net operating income and cash flow rather than relying on gross yield.