Region · Census South Atlantic division · South
South Atlantic rental markets
The Atlantic-coast South from Delaware to Florida. 9 states and 716 ranked cities, summarized by the median Overall across those cities.
The honest read
South Atlantic ranks #2 of 9 U.S. regions for rental investing, with a median Overall of 53.3/100 across its ranked cities, above the national median. 9 states make up this division. Its strongest factor is population growth: 1.2%, 3rd of 9, backed by job growth (3rd).
The biggest drag is home-value growth: 3.4%, 8th 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 716 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 | 6.4% | #4 of 9 |
| Rent growth | Growth | 3.7% | #7 of 9 |
| Home value growth | Growth | 3.4% | #8 of 9 |
| Population growth | Growth | 1.2% | #3 of 9 |
| Job growth | Growth | 1.1% | #3 of 9 |
| Price-to-income | Cash Flow | 5.0× | #5 of 9 |
| Unemployment | Stability | 3.9% | #3 of 9 |
| Rental demand | Stability | 43% renters · 7.0% vacancy | two-part measure |
| Income growth | Growth | 5.6% | #3 of 9 |
States in the South Atlantic 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Insufficient coverage for headline state rank | Delaware | 60.2 | A | 6.4% | 4.0% | 5.4× | 11 |
| #3 | Georgia | 57.8 | A | 6.4% | 4.2% | 4.5× | 141 |
| #5 | Florida | 55 | B | 6.7% | 2.7% | 5.5× | 226 |
| #7 | South Carolina | 54.1 | B | 6.1% | 4.0% | 4.9× | 64 |
| #8 | North Carolina | 53.2 | B | 5.6% | 3.8% | 4.7× | 140 |
| #24 | Virginia | 44.7 | C | 5.9% | 4.2% | 4.9× | 63 |
| #27 | West Virginia | 43.7 | D | 7.7% | 4.0% | 3.3× | 26 |
| #33 | Maryland | 39.4 | D | 8.0% | 2.9% | 4.0× | 44 |
| Insufficient coverage for headline state rank | District of Columbia | 34.4 | F | 5.3% | -0.7% | 5.2× | 1 |
Top 25 cities in the South Atlantic division
The 25 highest-ranked of its 716 ranked cities, in national order. Every city links to its full shown-math breakdown; all 716 are in the market explorer.
| Div rank | City | Grade | Cash Flow | Growth | Stability | Typical home value | Gross yield | National rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 med | Ranson corporation WV | 83 | A | B | B | $242,700 ACS | 7.6% ACS | #3 |
| 2 | Temple GA | 80 | A | A | C | $284,538 | 8.1% | #7 |
| 3 | Deltona FL | 78 | A | B | B | $298,293 | 8.2% | #14 |
| 4 | Moncks Corner SC | 78 | A | A | B | $364,739 | 7.4% | #17 |
| 5 | Villa Rica GA | 78 | A | B | B | $311,863 | 7.1% | #18 |
| 6 | Auburn GA | 77 | B | A | B | $361,382 | 7.6% | #21 |
| 7 | Freeport FL | 77 | B | A | A | $387,463 | 5.5% | #27 |
| 8 | North Port FL | 76 | A | B | B | $301,967 | 7.6% | #31 |
| 9 | Haines City FL | 76 | B | A | B | $293,072 | 8.3% | #35 |
| 10 med | Whispering Pines NC | 76 | B | A | B | $534,091 | 6.0% ACS | #36 |
| 11 | Perry GA | 76 | A | A | B | $276,152 | 7.5% | #37 |
| 12 | Camden SC | 75 | A | A | B | $252,634 | 8.5% | #40 |
| 13 | Fountain Inn SC | 75 | B | B | B | $310,114 | 8.0% | #46 |
| 14 | Winder GA | 74 | B | A | B | $340,237 | 7.3% | #48 |
| 15 med | Archer Lodge NC | 74 | B | A | B | $324,500 ACS | 5.4% ACS | #54 |
| 16 med | Walkertown NC | 74 | A | B | B | $270,880 | 7.0% ACS | #57 |
| 17 | West Columbia SC | 73 | A | B | B | $230,407 | 8.8% | #65 |
| 18 | Mauldin SC | 73 | B | B | B | $296,785 | 5.6% | #72 |
| 19 | Eastman GA | 73 | A | B | B | $156,807 | 7.3% | #74 |
| 20 | Cramerton NC | 73 | A | B | B | $306,785 | 7.7% | #78 |
| 21 med | Centerville GA | 73 | A | B | C | $230,546 | 8.1% ACS | #79 |
| 22 | Milford DE | 73 | B | A | B | $345,109 | 6.5% | #80 |
| 23 | DeBary FL | 72 | B | B | B | $378,513 | 6.7% | #84 |
| 24 | Indian Trail NC | 72 | B | B | B | $414,348 | 5.9% | #85 |
| 25 | Auburndale FL | 72 | B | A | C | $302,746 | 7.3% | #89 |
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. 5 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.