Albemarle County, VA

Albemarle’s decision tension is a $565,396 Zillow median home value against a 4.33% published gross yield before costs. Yield-focused buyers should be cautious: at 2026-06, Zillow’s value measure was modestly higher year over year, whereas FHFA’s 2025 repeat-transaction HPI rose 5.52%. The HPI is an appreciation index, not a home value, and these differently dated methods cannot be merged into one growth rate.

The published market-rent observation is $2,041 per month, a measured asking-rent statistic, while HUD’s two-bedroom FMR is $1,824 per month and is a payment standard, not an asking-rent estimate. The supplied gross yield is before property tax, insurance, maintenance, vacancy, or debt; the effective property-tax rate is 0.75%. Unit-specific operating costs and rent comparables—not FMR—are needed to judge post-tax carrying economics.

Realtor.com’s 2026-06 MLS listing evidence shows visible supply up 34% year over year, median asking prices down 7.14%, longer marketing time, and 12.27% of listings reduced. These are active-listing and seller-concession signals, not closed-sale prices or independent proof of buyer demand. Tax-return migration had more households moving in than out and higher inbound average AGI. QCEW’s 2025 county-workplace data reports employment and covered-worker wages increased; education and health services is the largest disclosed private supersector, not the full economy. Investor purchases were 134 of 1,275 total purchases, a minority but a source of competition worth checking by submarket.

Inland flood is the dominant hazard, alongside a modeled annual building-value loss ratio of 0.12%; that countywide model cannot establish a parcel’s flood exposure, insurability, or deductible. Missing closed-sale comps, property-level flood and insurance records, lease-level rent comps, vacancy and operating costs, and financing terms prevent a conclusion on executable price, net yield, or debt coverage. Next checks are parcel flood mapping, insurance quotes, comparable signed leases, and recent closed sales.