Region · Census East South Central division · South
East South Central rental markets
The interior Deep South. 4 states and 353 ranked cities, summarized by the median Overall across those cities.
The honest read
East South Central ranks #1 of 9 U.S. regions for rental investing, with a median Overall of 55.2/100 across its ranked cities, above the national median. 4 states make up this division. Its strongest factor is low unemployment: 3.6%, 1st of 9, backed by gross rental yield (2nd).
The biggest drag is income growth: 4.8%, 7th of 9. A region grade is the median of its ranked cities, a screen for where to look, not underwriting. Open any city below for its full shown-math breakdown, or run a specific deal through the cap rate and cash-flow calculators.
Where it ranks, factor by factor
Every value is the median across the 353 ranked cities in this region. The national rank compares all 9 regions on that one factor; the engine already flips inverted factors (affordability, low unemployment) so a better rank always means a better market. Each factor sits in one of the model’s three categories (Cash Flow, Growth, or Stability); this is a representative summary, and the full thirteen-factor breakdown is on each city’s page. Full methodology.
| Factor | Category | Region value | National rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gross rent yield | Cash Flow | 6.7% | #2 of 9 |
| Rent growth | Growth | 3.9% | #5 of 9 |
| Home value growth | Growth | 3.5% | #6 of 9 |
| Population growth | Growth | 0.8% | #4 of 9 |
| Job growth | Growth | 1.0% | #4 of 9 |
| Price-to-income | Cash Flow | 4.2× | #4 of 9 |
| Unemployment | Stability | 3.6% | #1 of 9 |
| Rental demand | Stability | 41% renters · 6.8% vacancy | two-part measure |
| Income growth | Growth | 4.8% | #7 of 9 |
States in the East South Central division
Ordered by median Overall across each state's ranked cities. A public rank appears only for states that clear the 20-city and 10-county coverage threshold.
| Div rank | State | Overall score | Grade | Gross yield | Home-value growth | Price-to-income | Ranked cities |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | Alabama | 59.1 | A | 7.2% | 3.0% | 3.7× | 108 |
| #6 | Tennessee | 54.9 | B | 6.0% | 3.8% | 4.9× | 104 |
| #12 | Mississippi | 51.9 | B | 9.0% | 1.8% | 3.5× | 61 |
| #14 | Kentucky | 51.2 | B | 6.0% | 4.8% | 4.2× | 80 |
Top 25 cities in the East South Central division
The 25 highest-ranked of its 353 ranked cities, in national order. Every city links to its full shown-math breakdown; all 353 are in the market explorer.
| Div rank | City | Grade | Cash Flow | Growth | Stability | Typical home value | Gross yield | National rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Calera AL | 86 | A | A | A | $256,768 | 8.0% | #1 |
| 2 med | Margaret AL | 81 | A | A | B | $230,900 ACS | 5.8% ACS | #5 |
| 3 | Pearl MS | 78 | A | B | B | $211,439 | 8.6% | #13 |
| 4 | Brandon MS | 78 | A | B | A | $290,329 | 7.5% | #15 |
| 5 | Helena AL | 77 | A | B | B | $364,101 | 6.3% | #24 |
| 6 | Ocean Springs MS | 76 | A | B | B | $272,484 | 8.1% | #30 |
| 7 | Hartselle AL | 76 | A | B | B | $249,857 | 7.7% | #33 |
| 8 | Prattville AL | 75 | A | B | B | $267,391 | 7.9% | #39 |
| 9 | Moody AL | 75 | A | B | B | $264,863 | 8.2% | #42 |
| 10 | Hernando MS | 75 | B | B | A | $344,819 | 7.7% | #43 |
| 11 med | Muscle Shoals AL | 74 | B | B | B | $263,320 | 6.2% ACS | #50 |
| 12 | Diamondhead MS | 74 | A | B | C | $247,115 | 8.5% | #52 |
| 13 | Alabaster AL | 74 | A | C | A | $305,607 | 7.4% | #53 |
| 14 | Odenville AL | 74 | A | B | B | $259,313 | 7.7% | #58 |
| 15 | Medina TN | 73 | A | B | C | $322,525 | 6.5% | #76 |
| 16 | Madison AL | 73 | B | A | B | $376,375 | 4.5% | #77 |
| 17 med | Robertsdale AL | 72 | B | B | B | $268,665 | 5.2% ACS | #82 |
| 18 | Pelham AL | 72 | A | B | B | $324,755 | 6.8% | #83 |
| 19 | Daphne AL | 72 | B | B | B | $328,052 | 5.8% | #91 |
| 20 | Corbin KY | 72 | A | B | B | $170,311 | 7.1% | #97 |
| 21 | Franklin KY | 72 | B | B | B | $248,924 | 7.0% | #98 |
| 22 | Foley AL | 72 | B | A | B | $302,708 | 6.8% | #102 |
| 23 | White House TN | 72 | B | B | B | $387,992 | 5.7% | #105 |
| 24 | Millbrook AL | 71 | A | B | B | $222,439 | 7.6% | #112 |
| 25 med | Richland MS | 71 | A | B | C | $222,968 | 11.3% ACS | #121 |
Figures marked ACS come from the Census American Community Survey (5-year, 2020–2024), because Zillow publishes no index for that city: an ACS home value is the owner-reported median, and an ACS yield is the median gross rent over that median. 4 of the 25 cities shown carry one.
Data as of: Zillow ZHVI/ZORI through the latest monthly release · Census ACS 5-yr 2020–2024 · Census PEP July 2025 · BLS LAUS county 2025 annual (11-month average). Generated 2026-10-06. Methodology & limitations · underwrite any specific deal with the free calculators.