At the city level, Zillow’s typical home value is $271,374 and its typical observed monthly market rent is $1,361. That pairing produces a 6.0% gross yield, calculated as annual ZORI divided by ZHVI and before every operating cost. ZHVI equals 5.64x ACS median household income, while annual ZORI equals 34.0% of that income. These cross-source affordability screens show the household budget hurdle, not a buyer’s financing or tenant’s utility-inclusive payment.
City tenure is renter-heavy: 63.4% of occupied units are renter occupied. Of all city housing units, 57.1% are single-family and 15.5% are large multifamily, so underwrite against the matching property type. ACS reports a $124,200 median value for surveyed owner-occupied housing and $1,062 median gross rent for occupied rentals, including selected utilities. These ACS measures cover different housing concepts and periods from Zillow’s typical value and observed market rent; they should not be averaged or treated as contradictory.
Direct city depth shows that 49.0% of measured renter households are rent burdened, and the citywide housing vacancy rate is 8.3%; units listed for rent account for 39.2% of vacant units. These are broad stock indicators, not evidence that a particular unit will lease quickly or that surveyed vacancies are purchasable inventory. Population rose 2.2% between overlapping ACS vintages, a nonannualized comparison that may also reflect boundary changes. Median household income is $48,099, while poverty is 30.5% and unemployment is 11.4%. Together these describe demand constraints, not their causes, tenant quality or future rent collection.
In Dauphin County, county listings had a median 40 days on market and 14.4% were price reduced, while the county investor-purchase share was 13.4%; these county measures frame transaction conditions but do not measure Harrisburg alone. In the broader Harrisburg metro, employment changed -0.03% over the reported interval, months of supply was 1.6, and building permits totaled 1,484; the metro measures suggest flat labor momentum, limited listed supply and permitted additions, without identifying city inventory. The national Freddie Mac 30-year mortgage rate was 6.66%, a national financing benchmark rather than a city borrowing quote.
Key gaps are property condition, unit-specific rent, concessions, utilities, insurance, assessed taxes, maintenance, management, turnover, financing and compliance. Verify title and systems; obtain leases, a rent roll and trailing statements; quote insurance and debt; confirm taxes and utilities; inspect capital needs; and compare similar local listings and closed sales. Stress vacancy and repairs rather than treating citywide statistics as a lease-up guarantee.