FIPS 53053 · population 930,319 · part of Seattle, WA
The latest county-level Zillow ZORI is $1,962 per month in 2026-06. It is a typical asking-rent index across rental types—not an arithmetic average, signed lease or quote for one property.
| Bedrooms | HUD monthly FMR | Geography | Measurement boundary |
|---|---|---|---|
| Studio | $1,428 | Pierce County, WA | HUD administrative benchmark; compare with same-bedroom listings, never treat it as observed asking rent. |
| 1 bedroom | $1,605 | Pierce County, WA | HUD administrative benchmark; compare with same-bedroom listings, never treat it as observed asking rent. |
| 2 bedrooms | $1,971 | Pierce County, WA | HUD administrative benchmark; compare with same-bedroom listings, never treat it as observed asking rent. |
| 3 bedrooms | $2,733 | Pierce County, WA | HUD administrative benchmark; compare with same-bedroom listings, never treat it as observed asking rent. |
| 4 bedrooms | $3,102 | Pierce County, WA | HUD administrative benchmark; compare with same-bedroom listings, never treat it as observed asking rent. |
Zillow asking rent, ACS gross rent and HUD FMR describe different housing universes. They remain separate and no metro, city or neighboring-county value replaces missing county evidence.Zillow pulled 2026-07-26 · HUD pulled 2026-07-26
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 estimates a current home value. FHFA tracks repeat mortgage transactions. Their growth rates should be read side by side, not averaged.
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.
Workplace source: BLS QCEW — county employment and wages · annual county employment and wages 2021-2025; latest 2025 vs 2024 · pulled 2026-08-02. QCEW counts covered jobs located in the county, not employed residents or the metro score’s CES/LAUS series.
BEA per-capita personal income divides all personal income by the county population. It is broader than wages, but it is not household income or a measure of what renters can afford.
HUD CHAS separates renter households by income relative to local HAMFI. Moderate burden means housing costs above 30% through 50% of income; severe burden means more than 50%.
These Apartment List observations match the exact county Census code 53053. They are kept separate from Zillow asking rent, Census occupied-home rent and wider metro measures.
Monthly overall-rent index; missing observations are not filled from another geography.
Pierce County’s tension is a rent-supported but price-ambiguous entry point: it warrants property-level review for investors who can underwrite carrying costs, and caution for buyers depending on prompt appreciation. Zillow’s county median home value was $573,349, down 0.13% year over year, whereas FHFA’s separately labeled annual repeat-transaction HPI rose 2.89%. The HPI is an index rather than a home value; different methods and observation periods prevent combining these readings into one growth rate.
Measured median asking rent was $1,962 per month and stated gross yield was 4.11%, before expenses. HUD’s $1,971 two-bedroom Fair Market Rent is a payment standard, not an asking-rent estimate, and should not replace the measured market rent. The effective property-tax rate was 0.91%, with median annual tax of $4,770; together with the price-to-rent relationship, that makes expense verification central. The record does not publish insurance, maintenance, vacancy, utility, financing, or property-level assessment costs, preventing net-yield and debt-service conclusions.
Realtor.com’s MLS listing-market evidence shows visible softening rather than completed-sale evidence: active listings rose 15.69% year over year and 23.07% of listings had reductions. Tax-return migration was net positive by 1,150 households, while average income of incoming moving households exceeded outgoing households by $2,992. Investor mortgages accounted for 6.27% of purchase mortgages. This mix provides demand and competition context, but it does not demonstrate absorption, tenant demand, or investor bidding intensity at a target property.
QCEW annual covered workplace employment rose 1.09%; Trade, transportation, and utilities was the largest disclosed private supersector, at 26.00% of total private covered jobs. These are workplace-based covered-employment measures, not resident jobs, unemployment, or a forecast. Earthquake is the dominant hazard, and modeled climate loss equals 0.23% of building value annually; that model does not establish actual insurance cost or damage at an address. Obtain earthquake coverage, deductibles, retrofit and construction records, lease rolls, operating statements, closed-sale comps, and financing terms before relying on the county thesis.
This view uses 12 direct Zillow ZIP markets matched to Census ZCTAs. Each ZIP is assigned by its largest HUD residential county share; this is not an exhaustive county inventory.
Across the selected direct-evidence ZIP/ZCTA matches in Pierce County, Zillow’s June 2026 ZORI—a typical observed asking-rent index—ranges from $1,537 to $2,487. That is a $950 spread around a $1,869.50 median, enough to make local price positioning, rather than a single county figure, the central rental decision. The county’s ZORI is $1,962, with a 2.16% annual change, but the selected set shows that a county reference can obscure materially different asking-rent levels. The practical question is which current listings fit a household’s required unit size, budget, and lease terms, while recognizing that ZORI describes an index rather than the price of any specific vacant unit.
Within the selected set, ZIP 98444 anchors the low end at $1,537 and recorded 2.25% annual ZORI growth, while ZIP 98374 anchors the high end at $2,487 and grew 1.82%. ZIP 98498 posted the fastest change, 7.32%, whereas ZIP 98405 declined 1.46%. These movements identify differing recent index paths, not predictions or explanations. Renters comparing options should prioritize the current rent band first and use the change rate only as a secondary signal to recheck listing availability and renewal terms. Nothing in these figures establishes why a ZIP differs from another or whether its change will persist.
Do not merge the three rent measures. For this displayed ZIP set, HUD’s FY2026 two-bedroom FMR is $2,501, compared with the county counterpart of $1,971; it is an administrative payment standard, not an asking-rent estimate. The Zillow-to-local-HUD ratios span 61.5% to 99.4%, a useful standard comparison but not a discount calculation. Separately, ACS ZCTA five-year survey median gross rents range from $1,473 to $2,061, reflecting a distinct survey measure that is not contemporaneous ZORI. ACS rent-burden shares range from 43.3% to 63.9%, while vacancy rates span 2.5% to 8.2%. Lower cost or lower burden should not be read independently of this separate survey availability signal; neither metric assures a suitable current listing. Use ZORI for observed asking-rent conditions, ACS for survey context, and HUD for the bedroom-specific program standard.
Coverage and geography require restraint. The report shows 12 ZIP/ZCTA matches from 33 eligible direct-ZORI matches, covering 65,094 renter households; it is not a complete county or neighborhood inventory. Every displayed ZIP is assigned to Pierce County using the largest HUD residential-address share, which is 100% here, yet ZIPs can cross county lines and Census ZCTAs are statistical areas rather than USPS delivery ZIPs. Before selecting a unit, confirm the exact address and county assignment, bedroom count, advertised rent, included utilities, lease length, deposit and recurring fees, available date, concessions, income rules, and screening criteria. Those property-level terms determine the actual offer and cannot be supplied by the index, survey estimates, or HUD standard.
33 ZIP profiles passed the county gate; the 12 with the most renter households are shown.
| ZIP / ZCTA | Zillow asking rent | ACS gross rent | HUD 2BR | Burden 30%+ | Vacancy | Income screen | HUD county share |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 98499 | $1,676 | $1,473 | $2,501 | 49.4% | 6.4% | $67k | 100.0% |
| 98444 | $1,537 | $1,647 | $2,501 | 63.9% | 7.2% | $61k | 100.0% |
| 98409 | $1,641 | $1,645 | $2,501 | 52.7% | 3.7% | $66k | 100.0% |
| 98405 | $1,560 | $1,551 | $2,501 | 54.9% | 4.9% | $62k | 100.0% |
| 98466 | $1,977 | $1,843 | $2,501 | 52.7% | 3.1% | $79k | 100.0% |
| 98373 | $1,965 | $1,929 | $2,501 | 48.9% | 2.5% | $79k | 100.0% |
| 98374 | $2,487 | $2,061 | $2,501 | 50.6% | 3.5% | $99k | 100.0% |
| 98372 | $2,104 | $1,783 | $2,501 | 43.8% | 3.4% | $84k | 100.0% |
| 98498 | $1,774 | $1,711 | $2,501 | 43.3% | 8.2% | $71k | 100.0% |
| 98406 | $2,193 | $1,764 | $2,501 | 53.9% | 3.4% | $88k | 100.0% |
| 98404 | $2,163 | $1,483 | $2,501 | 56.3% | 4.1% | $87k | 100.0% |
| 98402 | $1,757 | $1,553 | $2,501 | 49.4% | 7.6% | $70k | 100.0% |
Open a five-digit report for asking rent, affordability, rent history and resale liquidity. Each row keeps its ZIP/ZCTA measurement scope.
| ZIP report | City label | Zillow rent | 1Y change | ACS burden 30%+ | Population |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ZIP 98406 rental reportPierce County | Tacoma, WA | $2,193 | ▲ 5.7% | 53.9% | 24,202 |
| ZIP 98422 rental reportPierce County | Tacoma, WA | $2,185 | ▲ 2.6% | 46.9% | 21,644 |
| ZIP 98402 rental reportPierce County | Tacoma, WA | $1,757 | ▲ 1.9% | 49.4% | 8,080 |
| ZIP 98409 rental reportPierce County | Tacoma, WA | $1,641 | ▲ 3.8% | 52.7% | 27,843 |
| ZIP 98405 rental reportPierce County | Tacoma, WA | $1,560 | ▼ 1.5% | 54.9% | 25,939 |
Zillow ZORI is an asking-rent index. ACS burden and population describe the Census ZCTA; missing observations remain n/a.
Census-recognized incorporated places and CDPs that intersect this county. The list does not pretend to include every neighborhood or informal community.
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.
0.227% of building value expected lost per year
$4,770 median annual bill
28,102 in · 26,952 out
$73,728 arriving · $70,736 leaving
672 of 10,724 mortgages
Listing price is an asking price, not a closed sale. Quality-flagged county rows are withheld instead of displayed.
A metro is an average of these. Which side of a county line a property sits on can change the tax bill, the hazard profile and the tenant pool.
| County | Population | Price | Rent | Yield | Hazard |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pierce County | 930,319 | $573k | $1,962 | 4.1% | earthquake |
| King County | 2,287,171 | $858k | $2,330 | 3.3% | earthquake |
| Snohomish County | 844,430 | $754k | $2,232 | 3.5% | earthquake |
Yes. Median asking rent is $1,962 per month and stated gross yield is 4.11% before costs; HUD two-bedroom FMR is a separate $1,971 payment standard.
No. Zillow shows a 0.13% county-value decline, while FHFA reports a 2.89% annual HPI increase; their methods and observation periods differ.
Earthquake is the dominant hazard; modeled climate loss is 0.23% of building value annually, but address-level insurance and vulnerability are not published.