Newark’s current Zillow ZHVI is $486,845, while ZORI is $2,130 a month. Together they imply a 5.25% gross yield before every operating cost. Against ACS median household income of $52,060, the Zillow value equals 9.35x income and annualized ZORI equals 49.1% of income. That affordability frame is tight, while the yield is only a top-line screen rather than cash flow.
Citywide, Newark has 121,546 housing units; renters hold 75.6% of occupied units, and the overall vacancy rate is 6.7%. ACS reports a $373,700 owner-reported median home value and $1,392 median gross rent for occupied housing, with gross rent including selected utilities. Those survey measures differ in definition and period from Zillow’s typical value and observed market rent and should not be averaged. Tenure and vacancy describe the citywide stock, not how quickly a specific unit will lease.
City ACS data show 57.1% of renter households spend at least 30% of income on rent. Single-family units are 23.2% of all housing, and large multifamily units are 21.6%; among vacant units, 34.2% are classified as for rent. These survey shares neither identify purchasable inventory nor establish unit-level demand. Population is 310,178, up 10.4% between overlapping ACS vintages; that change is not annualized and could reflect boundary changes. Median household income is $52,060, while poverty is 23.4% and unemployment is 11.6%. The latter measures flag demand constraints but do not prove causes, tenant quality or achievable rent.
In Essex County, Zillow’s typical value is $675,065, typical rent is $2,274 and supplied gross yield is 4.04%; these are county benchmarks, not Newark measurements. Across Essex County, Realtor median time on market is 31 days, offering only countywide sale-liquidity context. For the broader metro, this record establishes no sales, labor or permitting condition, so none should be assumed. Nationally, the supplied Freddie Mac mortgage rate is 6.58%, a financing input rather than a Newark market measure.
Main limitations are the lack of property-specific operating costs and metro evidence, plus incompatible Zillow and ACS measures. Before underwriting, verify the address’s asking and signed rents, current occupancy, concessions, lease terms and tenant-paid utilities. Obtain actual property taxes, insurance quotes, financing terms, management costs, maintenance history and near-term capital needs, then rebuild net operating income and debt coverage. Confirm title, legal use, unit count, zoning, permits, code status, physical condition and site-level hazard exposure; none can be inferred from city or county averages.