Roanoke Rapids, NC

Roanoke Rapids, NC is best read as a current-condition research case rather than a ranked rental call. This metropolitan or micropolitan statistical area has 64,606 residents, and the packet supplies a broad set of direct market indicators, but their time bases and constructs differ. Zillow does not publish enough rent-index history here to calculate a trailing-12-month rent change. That change is unavailable; consequently, this report does not assign a score or rank. The decision frame is therefore narrower: assess the present rent-to-value screen, the income and Fair Market Rent boundary, listings and permitted supply, labor and migration signals, mortgage occupancy, and FEMA risk without turning a single measure into a forecast.

Zillow’s 2026-06-30 asking-rent index is $1,048 and its home-value index is $107,355; the value index is 5.3% above its prior-year reading. The supplied 11.71% gross yield summarizes the relationship between those current Zillow measures, but it is a gross screen rather than a net operating result. The packet does not provide expense, vacancy, financing, tax, or lease-renewal evidence. More importantly, rising Zillow value data and a current Zillow asking-rent level cannot establish whether rents rose, fell, or held steady over the unavailable trailing-12-month period. That missing comparison is precisely why the positive value change cannot support a rental-growth score.

Census ACS reports median household income of $47,104, with supplied rent-to-income and price-to-income ratios of 26.69% and 2.28. HUD’s FY2026 two-bedroom Fair Market Rent is $948.50. Zillow’s $1,048 asking-rent index is $99.50 above that HUD benchmark, a difference calculated from the supplied figures, and its 1.104 rent-versus-FMR ratio represents a 10.4% premium. The comparison is an affordability boundary, not a universal affordability finding. Census measures household income, HUD sets a two-bedroom Fair Market Rent standard, and Zillow tracks an asking-rent index; the packet does not align household type, bedroom count, renter income, or signed lease rent across those sources.

Labor, construction, and resale data create a more conflicted supply reading. BLS LAUS shows employment down 0.88% in the 12 months to 2026-05. Census Building Permits Survey shows 158 permitted homes in 2026 year-to-date through M06, or 2.45 per 1,000 residents, with 0 permits in buildings of 5 or more units and 0% of permits in that category. Redfin, at 2026-05-01, reports 2.9 months of supply versus 5.1 previously, while median days on market lengthened to 85 from 46. Its 95.01% sale-to-list ratio and 26.45% price-drop share, down from 27.27%, do not resolve the tension between reduced inventory and longer marketing time. BLS measures labor change, Census Building Permits measures permitted supply, and Redfin describes for-sale conditions at a different stage.

IRS migration and HMDA mortgage data also separate participation from a complete demand conclusion. IRS county-to-county tax-return migration aggregated to the market records 1,119 moves in and 1,202 moves out, for net migration of -83. The supplied inbound AGI is $51,562 and outbound AGI is $52,557, a $995 difference calculated from those measures. This is a migration record, not a current tenant count. HMDA’s 2024 purchase-mortgage occupancy evidence lists 410 purchases, including 34 investor purchases, or an 8.29% investor share. HMDA thus identifies investor participation within that reported purchase evidence; it does not, by itself, establish total investor activity or a direction for future demand.

FEMA adds an exposure dimension separate from the rent, value, and transaction measures in this packet. FEMA’s National Risk Index gives Roanoke Rapids a 65.4 risk score and a climate loss ratio of 0.001268, with inland flood identified as the top hazard and water as the hazard type. These are expected-annual-loss evidence, not reported insurance premiums, realized repair costs, or an individual asset’s loss history. The only supplied cost-level benchmarks are Zillow asking rent and HUD Fair Market Rent, which serve different purposes. No hazard-specific cost level is provided, so the FEMA evidence cannot be converted here into a rent adjustment, value adjustment, or claim about a particular location.

The useful next step is to treat the disagreements as an investigation agenda. Examine whether a time-consistent asking-rent history can supplement the unavailable Zillow trailing comparison, and clarify the comparability of Zillow’s asking-rent index with the HUD two-bedroom benchmark and Census income measure. Reconcile the 2.9-month Redfin inventory figure with the 85-day marketing time by reviewing the underlying for-sale series alongside the Census Building Permits totals and BLS labor series. Separate IRS migration flows from HMDA purchase-mortgage occupancy records before inferring broad renter or investor demand. Pair FEMA’s inland-flood signal with geographic risk and cost evidence not present in this packet. Until those checks are made, the evidence supports a current cross-source assessment, not a rent-growth score, market rank, forecast, neighborhood conclusion, or property-level conclusion.