Buchanan County presents a valuation-versus-income tension: Zillow shows a positive home-value move, while a separately timed, differently constructed FHFA appreciation measure is slower, and published market rent is absent. In 2026-06, Zillow’s median home value was $227,474, up 6.95% year over year. FHFA’s 2025 repeat-transaction HPI increased 3.91%; it is an index rather than a home value, and the observations are not the same vintage or method. Investors relying on property income should investigate rent, insurance and taxes before treating appreciation as the thesis.
Rental economics cannot yet support a gross-yield calculation because county market asking rent is not published. HUD’s $942 two-bedroom Fair Market Rent is a payment standard, not evidence of actual asking rent, and must not be substituted for rent in a yield calculation. The supplied effective property-tax rate of 1.36% is a known carrying-cost input, but parcel assessments, insurance, financing and operating costs are not published. Without market rent, the record cannot establish whether income supports the stated value and tax burden.
Realtor.com’s 2026-06 MLS snapshot showed 40 active listings, a median 43 days on market, and 18.26% of listings with price reductions. These are visible-supply, marketing-time and seller-concession indicators, not closed-sale prices or proof of buyer demand. Net migration was negative 85 tax-return households, although incoming movers had average AGI $6,504 above outgoing movers. That combination calls for buyer-pool review rather than a simple migration conclusion. Nonoccupant purchase mortgages accounted for 11.21% of purchases, indicating some investor participation but not the cash-buyer share or competition for a particular asset.
The 2025 QCEW record measures annual covered jobs at county workplaces, not resident employment or unemployment; Manufacturing was the largest disclosed private supersector. Inland flood is the dominant hazard, and the modeled annual building-value loss ratio is 0.18%, which should be paired with parcel flood location and insurance quotes rather than treated as a realized loss. Missing closed-sale comparables, market rent, vacancy and lease terms prevent income and exit underwriting; missing parcel assessments, flood-zone detail and insurance costs prevent a full carrying-cost conclusion.