Franklin County’s underwriting tension is positive price evidence against unproven rental economics and property-specific flood costs. Rental and resale buyers should investigate rather than assume appreciation converts to cash flow. Zillow’s county median home value was $302,374, up 5.25% year over year. A separate FHFA annual repeat-transaction HPI reading rose 12.97%; it supports a positive price direction but is not a home value, and its method and period cannot be combined with Zillow’s change.
Market asking rent is not published, so gross yield cannot be computed. HUD’s two-bedroom Fair Market Rent is a payment standard, not an asking-rent estimate, and cannot substitute. The effective property-tax rate is 0.59%, with median annual tax of $1,479; parcel assessment and insurance quotes are needed for carrying costs. Realtor.com MLS evidence showed 51 active listings, down 18.55% year over year: visible asking supply rather than closed sales.
Listing-market evidence is mixed. Median marketing time was 46 days and 27.63% of listings had price reductions; they describe marketing time and seller concessions, not proof of buyer demand or sale prices. Tax-return migration was net negative 80 households, while inbound movers’ average income exceeded outbound movers’ by $10,688. Investor participation was 3.81% across 236 total purchases, so the county data show limited measured investor participation rather than a broad competition conclusion.
Inland flood is the dominant hazard; modeled annual climate loss equals 0.20% of building value, not a parcel loss estimate. QCEW reports 4,517 annual average covered jobs at county workplaces, up 10.60%, not resident employment or a forecast. Verify elevation, flood insurance, claims, leases, market-rent comps, vacancy, operating costs, sale comps, and assessed taxes. Their absence prevents a gross-yield, net-cash-flow, exit-price-support, or parcel-risk conclusion.