States / Louisiana

State rental intelligence

Louisiana rental market data

A source-traced view across 13 metro markets and 64 counties. State figures below are labelled medians and totals—not a made-up statewide investment score.

10/13 metros scored64/64 counties with FEMA risk13 sources used in this analysis

Median scored metro43.5out of 100 · 10 measured metros

Louisiana identity diorama showing regional landscape, cities, housing, and infrastructure

Median metro home value$187kmedian across published metro values

Median metro rent$1,298monthly · published metro values

Median gross yield8.1%annual rent ÷ price · before costs

Median job trend▲ 0.0%trailing 12-month metro employment

State research brief

Measured metro asking rents are rising 2.7 percentage points faster than home values while job growth is nearly flat and migration is negative, making Louisiana’s rent-price spread a screening lead rather than a demand verdict.

Updated 2026-07-31 · evidence current to the releases listed below.

Across measured metros, median asking-rent growth was 3.9%, compared with 1.2% median home-value growth. That spread can improve acquisition economics, but it sits beside median employment growth of just 0.02% and net migration of -10,142, or -2.2 per 1,000 residents. Positive job growth in Ruston, Opelousas and Lake Charles is a genuine counter-signal, showing why the demand test must be local.

The median measured metro gross yield was 8.1%, but gross income does not resolve exit liquidity, usable vacancy, tenant affordability or physical risk. County rent data cover only 28 of 64 parishes, county listing data cover 46, and the packet lacks property-level insurance premiums, operating expenses and parcel hazard exposure. Those gaps prevent a statewide or property-level investment verdict.

3.9% median metro asking-rent growth versus 1.2% home-value growth → prioritize markets where current leases confirm that the rent-price spread is achievable

-10,142 net migration and 0.02% median job growth, despite positive named job markets → require local employer and household-demand validation

8.1% median gross yield and a 122.2% median asking-rent-to-FMR ratio → separate market-rent, HUD-rent and net-income underwriting

Morgan City’s 8.5 months of supply, 169 days on market and 85.9% sale-to-list ratio → use conservative resale timing and proceeds assumptions

17.2% median parish vacancy alongside 54.2% median renter burden → inspect whether vacant stock is usable and whether target rents fit tenant incomes

Price and rent momentum

Rent acceleration is outpacing value growth

Across 10 metros with measured rent growth, the median asking-rent increase was 3.9%. Median home-value growth across 13 measured metros was 1.2%, leaving a supplied difference of 2.7 percentage points. The rent-growth distribution ran from 0.7% at the 10th percentile to 17.8% at the 90th, while home-value growth ranged from -4.0% to 2.6%.

Monroe shows the sharpest named separation: asking rent rose 19.1% while home value rose 1.2%, alongside a 9.1% gross yield. Lake Charles recorded 17.6% rent growth, 2.8% value growth and a 7.5% yield; Ruston recorded 6.2%, 1.2% and 7.4%, respectively. These indices identify markets for current lease and sale-comp checks, but they do not establish achieved rent growth for a particular property.

Evidence: Zillow ZHVI — metro home values · Zillow ZORI — metro market rents

Employment and household movement

Out-migration tempers a positive local job subset

Median employment growth across 13 measured metros was 0.02%, with a 10th-to-90th percentile range of -1.6% to 1.7%. Across 64 parishes with migration data, 102,669 people moved in and 112,811 moved out, producing net migration of -10,142, or -2.2 per 1,000 residents.

The counter-signal is local employment strength: Ruston grew 2.6%, Opelousas 1.8% and Lake Charles 1.3%. Those readings support submarket investigation rather than a uniformly weak demand conclusion. Employment and migration come from different release periods, however, so the packet cannot show that recent job changes have reversed or caused the measured migration balance.

Evidence: Census ACS 5-year — population · BLS CES — payroll employment · BLS LAUS — resident employment · IRS SOI — county migration and mover income

Supply and resale conditions

Active permit markets coexist with a severe resale outlier

The 13 measured metros had medians of 3.6 months of supply, 56 days on market, a 29.0% price-drop share and a 97.2% sale-to-list ratio. Morgan City was much softer on several measures: 8.5 months of supply, 169 days on market and an 85.9% sale-to-list ratio. Its 21.6% price-drop share was below the metro median, demonstrating that price cuts alone do not capture its resale conditions.

Permit intensity was 9.0 units per 1,000 residents in Hammond and 5.3 in Lafayette, while both had 3.6 months of supply. Ruston recorded 5.0 permits per 1,000, 3.2 months of supply and 28 days on market. Permits flag a pipeline to verify; they are not completed units and do not identify rental tenure. Exit assumptions therefore need local inventory and transaction evidence rather than permit volume alone.

Evidence: Census Building Permits Survey — permitted units · Redfin Data Center — inventory, days on market, and price cuts

Entry cost and affordability

Gross yields look strong while asking rents exceed HUD benchmarks

The measured metro medians were a $187,464 home value, $1,298 monthly asking rent and 8.1% gross yield. Gross yields ranged from 7.3% at the 10th percentile to 9.7% at the 90th. Median rent-to-income was 27.0%, while median price-to-income was 3.25 times.

Opelousas had a 10.2% gross yield and 30.5% rent-to-income ratio; Morgan City had 9.8% and 21.7%; Monroe had 9.1% and 29.5%. Across measured metros, asking rent was a median 122.2% of the HUD two-bedroom fair market rent, with a 10th-to-90th percentile range of 106.0% to 143.2%. Market-rent and HUD-based underwriting should therefore remain separate, and gross yield must be tested after vacancy, maintenance, insurance, taxes and other unmeasured costs.

Evidence: Census ACS 5-year — household income · HUD Fair Market Rents — Section 8 standard · Zillow ZHVI — metro home values · Zillow ZORI — metro market rents

Housing stock and tenant conditions

High vacancy does not relieve renter strain

Across 64 measured parishes, the median vacancy rate was 17.2%, the median renter share was 26.7% and the median share of renters spending at least 30% of income on rent was 54.2%. Claiborne Parish combined 24.3% vacancy with 74.9% rent burden; East Carroll Parish combined 23.8% with 69.3%; Caldwell Parish combined 20.4% with 68.3%.

The median parish housing stock was built in 1983 and was 69.3% single-family, 20.1% mobile home and 1.2% large multifamily. The coexistence of vacancy and renter burden means total vacancy cannot be treated as available, suitable rental supply. These ACS measures do not show why units are vacant, their condition or whether they can compete for tenants.

Evidence: Census ACS 5-year — county housing value, tenure and stock

Physical risk and property tax

Leading hazards and tax burdens require separate screens

FEMA assigns inland flood as the mutually exclusive leading-hazard label for 38 parishes, hurricane for 25 and coastal flood for one. Across measured parishes, the FEMA climate loss ratio ranged from 0.11% at the 10th percentile to 0.48% at the 90th, with a 0.18% median. These labels identify each parish’s leading hazard; they do not establish parcel-level exposure.

Property-tax rates had a 0.44% median and a 0.28%-to-0.61% 10th-to-90th percentile range. Cameron Parish paired a 0.66% climate loss ratio with a 0.46% property-tax rate, while Orleans Parish paired a 0.45% loss ratio with a 0.83% tax rate. Hazard and tax burdens therefore need independent underwriting. The packet supplies neither parcel risk nor insurance premiums, leaving a material Louisiana-specific operating-cost gap.

Evidence: FEMA National Risk Index — hazard loss ratios · Census ACS 5-year — effective property tax

Evidence selected for Louisiana

The ranges behind the analysis

Each row keeps its own unit and shows the measured 10th percentile, median and 90th percentile. A single-value row is labelled directly.

Price and rent momentumAre home values and asking rents moving together or separating?

Employment and household movementDo jobs, household movement and mover income point in the same direction?

Supply and resale conditionsWhat do permits, inventory, marketing time and price cuts say about pressure?

Shape of the state

Distribution before conclusion

A statewide median can hide a wide spread. These SVG charts render at build time and carry no chart library or browser-side data request.

Metro score distribution10 scored metros · median 43.5

County evidence coverageEvery gap stays visible as missing—not estimated

Highest measured metro gross yieldsscreening metric only · before expenses and financing

Metro leaderboard

Markets touching Louisiana

Multi-state CBSAs appear in every member state. Score is still a metro score; no value is reweighted into a statewide ranking.

#	Metro	Score	Price	Rent	Yield	Jobs
1	Monroe, LA	78	$168k	$1,271	9.1%	▲ 1.1%
2	Lake Charles, LA	67	$204k	$1,268	7.5%	▲ 1.3%
3	Ruston, LA	67	$227k	$1,402	7.4%	▲ 2.6%
4	Shreveport, LA	49	$186k	$1,358	8.8%	▲ 0.0%
5	Alexandria, LA	47	$174k	$1,128	7.8%	▼ 0.1%
6	Baton Rouge, LA	40	$250k	$1,403	6.7%	▼ 0.0%
7	Houma, LA	38	$187k	$1,298	8.3%	▼ 0.4%
8	Lafayette, LA	32	$204k	$1,370	8.1%	▲ 0.4%
9	Hammond, LA	24	$226k	$1,402	7.4%	▼ 1.8%
10	New Orleans, LA	16	$265k	$1,617	7.3%	▼ 0.9%

Showing the top 10 scored metros of 13. Unscored metros remain discoverable through the national rankings.

Below the metro line

Largest counties in Louisiana

County figures join on the five-digit FIPS code. The table uses measured local values and prints “n/a” wherever a publisher has no record.

County	Population	Price	Rent	Yield	Hazard
East Baton Rouge Parish, LA	452,938	$236k	$1,386	7.0%	inland flooding
Jefferson Parish, LA	430,920	$276k	$1,525	6.6%	hurricane
Orleans Parish, LA	371,853	$248k	$1,664	8.1%	hurricane
St. Tammany Parish, LA	272,421	$288k	$1,544	6.4%	hurricane
Lafayette Parish, LA	247,997	$239k	$1,382	6.9%	hurricane
Caddo Parish, LA	230,004	$153k	$1,145	9.0%	inland flooding
Calcasieu Parish, LA	207,088	$203k	$1,268	7.5%	hurricane
Ouachita Parish, LA	158,480	$181k	$1,298	8.6%	inland flooding
Livingston Parish, LA	148,115	$256k	$1,467	6.9%	inland flooding
Tangipahoa Parish, LA	136,738	$226k	$1,402	7.4%	hurricane
Ascension Parish, LA	130,314	$310k	$1,826	7.1%	hurricane
Bossier Parish, LA	129,789	$246k	$1,497	7.3%	inland flooding

County yield sample28/64counties have the rent needed to compute yield

Statewide net migration−10,142IRS tax-return households summed across counties

Median investor share9.2%among counties with HMDA purchase records

Published city evidence

Go from Louisiana to a city record

These links exist only where an official Census place, direct city price and rent series, and a checked city brief are all available.

City · LANew Orleans$248k home · $1,664 rent · 8.1% yield City · LABaton Rouge$233k home · $1,383 rent · 7.1% yield City · LAShreveport$147k home · $1,170 rent · 9.5% yield City · LALafayette$228k home · $1,324 rent · 7.0% yield City · LALake Charles$208k home · $1,270 rent · 7.3% yield

Sources used in this analysis

Measured releases, not a global source count

Only sources supporting the selected evidence modules are listed here.

Bear case

What can break the thesis

Rent-growth coverage reaches 10 metros, county rent coverage reaches 28 of 64 parishes and county listing coverage reaches 46, so unmeasured localities may not follow the reported distributions.
Zillow asking-rent indices and gross yields do not establish achieved rents, collections, turnover, operating expenses or net returns.
Employment and migration measures cover different release periods, preventing a synchronized demand conclusion.
Building permits are not completed rental units, while resale inventory measures do not establish rental-market liquidity.
FEMA leading-hazard labels and parish loss ratios are not parcel exposure or insurance quotes; missing premiums could materially change apparent yields.

Investor questions

Before underwriting a property

Are rents clearly moving faster than home values?

At the measured medians, yes: asking rents rose 3.9% and home values rose 1.2%, a 2.7-percentage-point difference. Rent-growth data cover 10 metros, however, versus 13 for home values, so this is a distribution-level signal rather than a claim about every market.

Do employment and migration confirm the rent-growth signal?

Not broadly. Median metro employment growth was 0.02%, and parish migration totaled -10,142. Ruston, Opelousas and Lake Charles provide a counter-signal with job growth of 2.6%, 1.8% and 1.3%, respectively.

Where do the measured entry economics stand out?

Opelousas had a 10.2% gross yield, Morgan City 9.8% and Monroe 9.1%. Morgan City’s 8.5 months of supply and 169 days on market show why a high gross yield does not by itself resolve exit risk.

Can HUD fair market rent be used as the expected market rent?

No. Measured asking rent was a median 122.2% of the two-bedroom HUD fair market rent, with a 106.0%-to-143.2% 10th-to-90th percentile range. The two rent measures should be underwritten separately.

What evidence is still needed before bidding on a property?

Property-level lease comps, collections, operating expenses, condition, insurance quotes, tax verification, parcel hazard data and local resale evidence. The packet’s metro and parish distributions cannot supply those property-specific inputs.