Counties / Indiana / Daviess County

Daviess County, IN

FIPS 18027 · population 33,658 · outside every metro area

$244k
Zillow home value · 2026-06
The numbers

What this county costs and earns

Everything here joins on the county FIPS code, so each figure comes from the agency that publishes it with no name matching in between.

Zillow home value
$244k
▲ 7.8% year over year
Zillow ZHVI · direct
ACS median gross rent
$847
occupied-unit survey; not current asking rent
Census ACS · surveyed
Gross yield
n/a
gross yield cannot be computed without measured market rent
requires both measured price and measured rent
HUD 2-bed standard
$1,003
the Section 8 payment standard
HUD Fair Market Rent · direct
Independent price check

Do two methods point the same way?

Zillow estimates a current home value. FHFA tracks repeat mortgage transactions. Their growth rates should be read side by side, not averaged.

Both annual signals move in the same direction
FHFA five-year cumulative+51.5%not annualized · through 2025
0%ZILLOW ZHVI2026-06+7.8%FHFA HPI2025+1.1%
Annual changes use different methods and may use different periods. The comparison checks direction and magnitude; it does not create a blended estimate. Zillow county ZHVI pulled 2026-07-26; FHFA annual county HPI pulled 2026-07-28.
Owner-reported value$197k
Surveyed gross rent$847
Rent burden 30%+43.7%
Median year built1975
Housing composition

Who occupies the stock—and what it is

ACS 2024 5-year
8.3%vacant
12,887estimated housing units
Occupied tenure27.6% renter
owner 72.4%renter 27.6%
Structure mix82.2% single-family
Single-family 82.2%20+ units 4.1%Mobile home 8.4%Other 5.3%
ACS estimates describe the standing housing stock and occupied tenure. They do not measure current listings, transaction prices or asking rents.

Survey source: Census ACS 5-year — county housing value, tenure and stock · ACS 2024 5-year · pulled 2026-07-30. These values describe different housing universes and are not combined into gross yield.

Annual average covered jobs13,306▲ 0.4% from the prior annual release
Covered establishments996annual average reporting locations
Average weekly wage$1,001▲ 4.8% from the prior annual release
Largest private supersectorTrade, transportation, and utilities25.9% of disclosed private covered jobs
Local labor base

Jobs, pay and private-sector concentration

2025
0%COVERED JOBS+0.4%WEEKLY WAGE+4.8%Trade, transportation, and utilities25.9%
Annual QCEW counts cover jobs located at reporting establishments. The industry share uses disclosed private covered employment; it is not a resident-employment measure or a forecast.

Workplace source: BLS QCEW — county employment and wages · annual county employment and wages 2025 vs 2024 · pulled 2026-07-31. QCEW counts covered jobs located in the county, not employed residents or the metro score’s CES/LAUS series.

County brief

What the local evidence says

01Decision frame

Daviess County is a verification case rather than a clean price-growth call. Zillow’s county value measure labeled 2026-06 rose 7.81% year over year, while FHFA’s 2025 repeat-transaction HPI rose 1.06%. These are different vintages and methods and cannot be blended; FHFA is an appreciation index, not a home value. Investors able to test rents and flood costs should investigate, while yield-dependent acquisitions warrant caution.

02Housing economics

Housing economics remain unpriced for underwriting. Market asking rent is not published, so gross yield cannot be computed. HUD’s two-bedroom FMR is a payment standard, not an estimate of asking rent, and must not substitute for rent evidence. The effective property-tax rate of 0.69% is a carrying-cost input, but it does not establish the tax bill for a candidate property. Rent comparables, actual assessments, insurance, and utilities are needed to test cash flow.

03Demand & competition

Realtor.com’s MLS snapshot labeled 2026-06 shows active listings increased, median marketing time lengthened, and listings experienced price reductions; its median listing price also declined year over year. This is active-listing asking-market evidence of visible supply and seller concessions, not closed-sale pricing or proof of buyer demand. Tax-return migration shows 510 in-movers and 649 out-movers, a net loss of 139; in-movers’ average income was $997 higher, by calculation. Investors made 31 of 227 purchases, or 13.66%, indicating participation without clear dominance of buyer competition.

04Risk & next checks

Risk limits should lead the next review. Inland flood is the dominant hazard, and modeled annual climate loss equals 0.13% of building value; that model is not a parcel-specific insurance quote. QCEW’s 2025 annual covered workplace employment rose 0.40%; it is neither resident employment nor a forecast. Trade, transportation, and utilities is the largest disclosed private supersector, not the whole economy. Flood zone and elevation records, insurance quotes, property-level rents and expenses, and sale comparables are missing; without them, parcel cash flow, resale liquidity, and hazard exposure cannot be underwritten.

Cities & communities

Where people live within Daviess County

Census-recognized incorporated places and CDPs that intersect this county. The list does not pretend to include every neighborhood or informal community.

Population scale

Largest Census places

ACS 2024 5-year
Washington city12.4KOdon town1.4KMontgomery town1.1KElnora town531Plainville town412Cannelburg town178Raglesville CDP139Alfordsville town25
Bars use total place population, not a county-share estimate. An asterisk marks a place that crosses a county line.
Official directory

8 Census places

Population
  1. 01
    Washington cityIncorporated place
    12,367
  2. 02
    Odon townIncorporated place
    1,419
  3. 03
    Montgomery townIncorporated place
    1,111
  4. 04
    Elnora townIncorporated place
    531
  5. 05
    Plainville townIncorporated place
    412
  6. 06
    Cannelburg townIncorporated place
    178
  7. 07
    Raglesville CDPCensus-designated place
    139
  8. 08
    Alfordsville townIncorporated place
    25

Population is the total place-wide ACS estimate, not an allocated county share. A place crossing a county line is labelled explicitly. Source: Census ACS 5-year — cities and communities · ACS 2024 5-year · pulled 2026-07-30.

Risk, demand and competition

The three things a price does not tell you

01
Risk & carrying costFEMA NRI + Census ACS
Dominant hazardinland flooding

0.129% of building value expected lost per year

Effective property tax0.69%

$1,351 median annual bill

02
DemandIRS SOI household flows
Net migration-139

510 in · 649 out

Arriving vs leaving income+$997

$47,675 arriving · $46,678 leaving

03
CompetitionHMDA financed purchases
Purchases by investors13.7%

31 of 227 mortgages

investorother financed
Current listing pressure

What sellers and visible supply are doing

Realtor.com® Economic Research · county inventory 2026-06 · pulled 2026-07-28
Active listings64▲ 18.5% year over year
Median days on market70▲ 25.2% year over year
Listings price-reduced26.8%seller-concession signal
Median listing pricen/a▼ 5.5% year over year

Listing price is an asking price, not a closed sale. Quality-flagged county rows are withheld instead of displayed.

No rent index is published for this county.Zillow’s county rent series does not cover every county, and estimating one from a neighbouring county would be a guess wearing a number’s clothes. Everything above is measured here; no wider market is mapped for it either.
Bear case

What can break the county thesis

  1. Unpublished market rent and property-specific operating costs may leave cash flow unsupported.
  2. Parcel flood exposure, mitigation needs, and insurance pricing may differ materially from the county model.
  3. County-level listing and migration evidence may not represent the target neighborhood, property condition, or buyer pool.
Underwriting questions

Before pricing a property

Can gross yield be calculated from this record?

No. Market asking rent is not published, and HUD FMR cannot be used as market rent.

Does the Realtor.com evidence establish a closed-sale price or buyer demand?

No. It describes MLS asking prices, active supply, marketing time, and seller reductions rather than completed sales or demand.

What is the principal physical-risk issue to investigate?

Inland flood is the dominant hazard; parcel-level flood data and insurance quotes are needed.