Moving from Cleveland to Akron

BLS CES payroll employment for the 12 months through June 2026 fell 0.15% in Cleveland and 0.55% in Akron, leaving Akron’s change 0.40 percentage points more negative. This is an employment screen, not a property operating measure; payroll change does not establish vacancy or collections. For a renter, the contrast sits beside Akron’s lower observed asking rent. For an owner, the immediate diligence question is the employment mix among likely tenants: employer concentration, recent applicant income, lease-renewal outcomes and the stability of jobs represented on the actual rent roll.

The ACS 2024 five-year release reports median household income of $72,371 in Akron and $70,678 in Cleveland. IRS SOI migration for 2022-2023 points in another direction: average AGI was $63,413 for returns entering Akron versus $69,258 for returns entering Cleveland, while outgoing-return AGI was $71,226 in Akron and $79,426 in Cleveland. The Cleveland-to-Akron flow itself carried $69,947.92 of AGI per return. These sources cover different populations and vintages. Akron’s higher area median and lower mover AGI therefore belong in separate screens; neither identifies the income, debt burden or job stability of a specific renter household.

Zillow ZORI dated June 30, 2026 places Akron asking rent at $1,268 and Cleveland at $1,474. The destination discount is clear at that observation, but Akron’s year-over-year rent change was 1.73 percentage points higher. FY2026 HUD Fair Market Rent was only $11 lower in Akron. Fair Market Rent is a HUD standard used in housing programs, not a Zillow market-rent observation, so close dollar figures are not interchangeable evidence. A household should distinguish the advertised metro benchmark, the applicable HUD standard and the rent quoted for the specific unit.

Pairing the June 2026 Zillow releases with ACS 2024 five-year income produces cross-release screening ratios, not current household budget shares. Akron’s rent-to-income screen is 21.03%, versus 25.03% in Cleveland; its price-to-income screen is 3.39, versus 3.62. The home-value input is ZHVI, a metro Zillow home-value benchmark rather than transaction or comparable-sale evidence. For rental underwriting, Akron’s 6.20% screened gross yield sits below Cleveland’s 6.92% despite the lower rent and home-value benchmarks. The next question is whether subject-property rent, concessions and recurring expenses preserve or widen that observed yield difference.

Combining Census BPS permits for 2026 year to date through June with ACS 2024 population gives Akron 1.01 permits per thousand residents, versus 1.82 in Cleveland. Akron was also 25.2 percentage points lower in the share of permits located in buildings with at least five units. This is a cross-period descriptive screen, not a same-period supply rate, and it does not prove deliveries, vacancy or rent pressure. HMDA 2024 purchase originations place Akron’s investor share 2.96 percentage points below Cleveland’s. That occupancy screen is descriptive as well, not proof of buyer competition.

Redfin’s metro tracker through May 1, 2026 reported 1.8 months of supply in Akron, a median 23 days on market and price drops on 27.33% of listings. Those observations resist a single tight-or-loose resale label. In FEMA’s NRI counties ArcGIS release, the modeled climate/hazard loss ratio was 0.0785% for Akron and 0.0812% for Cleveland; inland flood was the top hazard in both markets. The ratio is a market-level hazard screen only. The next diligence question is the subject property’s flood classification, insurance quote, deductible, claims history and repair exposure alongside its likely resale segment.