Rental market · Savannah, TN · Incorporated city

Savannah, TN: average rent, home values, and rental yield

On this page

East South Central · Population 7,412

DatasetCity Market Score, model balanced4,812 of 5,233 tracked U.S. markets rankedgenerated 2026-10-06Latest source releases: Zillow ZHVI/ZORI 2026-08 · Census ACS 5-yr 2024 · Census PEP 2025 · Census BPS 2025 · BLS LAUS 2025 · Redfin 2026-05 · FBI CDE 2025How this is built
B55.2
#1,230 of 4,812 ranked markets
Overall Score 55.2 · stronger than 74% of ranked markets
Confidence 61/100 · 2 of 13 factors imputed, 3 dropped
Grade B: the biggest single drag is Cash Flow, 53.8 of 100 at 35% of the score, which is 36% of the distance to a perfect 100. See the arithmetic

Why this market does or does not qualify

Overall City Market Score rank #1,230 of 4,812. It does not enter the Buy & Hold shortlist under the baseline screen. Why rank and cash flow can disagree

Thin margin
Investor-entry estimate$97,950
Modeled rent$758/mo
20% down · base cash flow−$10/mo
25% down · rent stress to base−$40/mo to +$20/mo
Hold Coverage · 20% / 25%0.98 / 1.04
Conditional price ceiling · 25%$91,256
Required rent at entry estimate$814/mo
Limiting requirementHold Coverage is below 1.10 at 25% down

Price × rent decision grid · 25% down

Change the two inputs that usually decide the deal. Green cells clear the three financial requirements before the separate quality and data gates.

Monthly cash flow / Hold Coverage10% below entry$88,155Entry estimate$97,95010% above entry$107,745
10% higher rent$834/mo+$140/moHC 1.31 · clears financial screen+$80/moHC 1.16 · clears financial screen+$20/moHC 1.04 · does not clear
Modeled rent$758/mo+$80/moHC 1.17 · clears financial screen+$20/moHC 1.04 · does not clear−$40/moHC 0.93 · does not clear
10% lower rent$682/mo+$20/moHC 1.04 · does not clear−$40/moHC 0.92 · does not clear−$100/moHC 0.82 · does not clear

Expense waterfall · base case

Monthly, rounded to $10. NOI excludes CapEx and debt service.

  1. Scheduled rent+$760/mo
  2. Vacancy allowance−$40/mo
  3. Management−$60/mo
  4. Maintenance−$40/mo
  5. Property tax−$40/mo
  6. Insurance allowance−$40/mo
  7. NOI+$550/mo
  8. CapEx reserve−$40/mo
  9. Debt service−$490/mo
  10. Cash flow+$20/mo
Base+$20/mo · HC 1.04Rent stress−$40/mo · rent −10%Insurance-expense stress−$60/mo · allowance 1.5%

Two supported strengths
Growth 57/100 and Stability 55/100.

Weakest measured signal
Cash Flow is the weakest category at 54/100.

Primary evidenced risk: income growth is the weakest measured factor (7th national percentile). Data caveat: price is Zillow Bottom-Tier ZHVI (5th–35th percentile); rent is ACS survey gross rent and is not bedroom- or property-matched. Insurance is a 0.5% annual allowance, not a quote.

Scenario buy-hold-v1-2026-09-19: 7% fixed financing for 30 years; 20% and 25% down; 5% vacancy; 8% management on collected rent; 5% maintenance and 5% CapEx on scheduled rent; measured local property tax; 3% closing costs. Qualification also requires positive cash flow, Hold Coverage at least 1.10, nonnegative cash flow after 10% lower rent, and the existing quality and data gates.

Property verification checklist
  • Confirm achievable rent with bedroom-matched comps, current listings, and any existing lease.
  • Use the parcel’s actual tax bill and reassessment rules.
  • Obtain a landlord insurance quote, including wind, flood, or named-storm coverage where relevant.
  • Inspect roof, structure, mechanicals, deferred maintenance, and immediate capital needs.
  • Verify utilities, HOA, licensing, inspection, registration, and local rental rules.
  • Replace the modeled loan with a current lender quote, points, closing costs, and reserve requirements.

Why this grade

Overall 55.2 is a weighted geometric mean of the three category scores. Because they are multiplied rather than averaged, their distances from a perfect 100 combine as an exact identity, and each category's share of that distance is the arithmetic below, not an estimate. Cash Flow carries 36% of it, which is what makes it the binding constraint on this grade.

Cash Flow · 35% weight
53.8 / 100
36% of the shortfall
Growth · 35% weight
56.6 / 100
34% of the shortfall
Stability · 30% weight
55.2 / 100
30% of the shortfall

Inside Cash Flow, the shortfall splits over the factors the model scored here, exactly, in proportion to their published weights. The largest component is price to income (weight 13 of the category's 35, 35th national percentile, 52% of the category's own shortfall); next is expense-adjusted yield (weight 22 of the category's 35, 65th national percentile, 48% of the category's own shortfall).

What this is not. It is not a claim that a different value on any one factor would produce a different score or a different grade. Every factor is scored as a national percentile and the grade is a percentile cut against the other 4,812 ranked markets, so this market's position moves only relative to all of them, never on its own. 3 of the 13 factors could not be measured for this market (rent growth, violent crime, property crime) and had no credible reference group to impute from, so they are dropped: each category renormalizes over the factors that remain, and a dropped factor is never scored as neutral. 2 of the 13 factors were imputed (rental vacancy, months of supply): the model had no city input of the kind it scores, so it used a reference median instead of a measurement (the same county, or the same state and population band; a national median for a yield cost input), and the factor table marks each one as a fallback.

How Savannah ranks nationally

Each row places Savannah among all 4,812 ranked U.S. markets: the marker is this city, the centre tick is the national median, and the bar runs from one to the other. Further right is better for an investor; inverted measures (crime, vacancy, price-to-income) are already flipped.

Overall Scorethe flagship rank
55.274th percentile
Cash Flowyield & affordability
5455th percentile
Growthpopulation, jobs, income
5762nd percentile
Stabilitycrime, vacancy, unemployment
5563rd percentile
Expense-adjusted yield3.4% net of costs
6565th percentile
Affordabilityprice-to-income 5.0×
35more affordable than 35%
Population growth0.9%/yr (capped)
7171st percentile
Job growth0.8%/yr (capped)
5959th percentile

What a deal looks like here

A market-level buy-box for Savannah, built from this market's own numbers: the investor-entry price, its rent, and local carrying costs. The market grade is a quality screen; the deal verdict below is this financing scenario only. An illustrative scenario, not a listing.

Target buy price
$97,950
Expected rent
$758 /mo
Rent-to-price
0.77%
Cap rate
6.7%
Cash-on-cash
0.9% at 25% dn
NOI-based DSCR
1.12
Hold Coverage
1.04 after CapEx reserve

Thin margin. At 25% down, named scenarios span −$40 to +$20/mo after reserves (10% lower-rent stress to base case). This range is not a confidence interval.

Buy target = Zillow Bottom-Tier ZHVI (5th–35th percentile) $97,950; typical home value $196,900. Rent = Census ACS (fallback) (a typical all-homes rent, not tier-matched, so the ratio likely overstates the entry-level reality). Assumptions: 25% down, 7% / 30-yr, 5% vacancy, 8% management on collected rent, 5% maintenance, 5% CapEx reserve excluded from NOI and subtracted from cash flow, 0.5% insurance, 0.46% property tax. Illustrative market-level scenario: not a listing, appraisal, recommendation, or underwriting decision. Zillow price as of 2026-08-31; rent from Census ACS 5-yr 2020–2024; dataset generated 2026-10-06.

Typical home value $196,900 Median rent $758/mo Population 7,412 Region East South Central

Price & rent history

Home value $64,124 → $196,900 (2000-01–2026-08)

Asking rent: no Zillow ZORI series - Zillow does not cover this city (Census-only). Nothing plotted rather than estimated.

Source: Zillow ZHVI (home value), quarterly from 2000-01, monthly from 2016-09 to 2026-08. Change the range or hover to read any point. Gaps in the source series are left as gaps - never interpolated.

ZIP markets in Savannah

1 Census ZIP Code (ZCTAs) officially overlap Savannah by land area · 1 data-eligible for subscores. Overlap is Census land-area share, not a population or address share. Each ZIP Code's overall Rental Investor ZIP Score, grade and canonical national rank are shown below (the two component signals, affordability and rental market, are separate percentiles). There is no city-scoped ZIP rank: city overlap isn't a ranking universe, so only the national rank is shown. These ZIP rankings sit in the ZIP universe only, never mixed with, and not directly comparable to, Savannah's city ranking. Vintage: the Key metric column below is Census ACS 2020–2024 (5-year), the same survey release as the figures used above for Savannah itself; a city and a ZIP Code are different geographies, so the same measure can still show a different number at each level.

1 of 1 overlapping ZIP Code area, scoredgrade, overall Rental Investor ZIP Score and national rank for each, on a separate model from this page's city scoreShow table
ZIP CodeOverallgrade · natl rankTier · overlapAffordabilitysignal · natl rankRental marketsignal · natl rankKey metric
38372Savannah A 65#1,573 nat RankedPrimary 77#1,786 of 20,132 · top 9% 66#3,157 of 20,132 · top 16% 5.7%Survey yield
Open these 1 ZIP markets in the explorer →

The honest read

Savannah scores 55/100 overall (grade B): 54 for Cash Flow, 57 for Growth, and 55 for Stability, each a 0–100 score built from the factors in that category. The scenario above shows what a representative investor-entry purchase pencils out to at today's rates. Everything we can measure is in the table below, with its source.

Every factor, shown

The Overall score blends three category scores built from thirteen factors: Cash Flow (35%), Growth (35%), and Stability (30%). The tag on each percentile names the category a scored factor feeds; untagged rows are context, not scored. Each band chip restates that row's percentile in words. Every value carries its source and as-of date; a fallback source or imputed value is marked fallback. How the score works.

FactorValueNational percentileSource · as-ofWhat it means
Expense-adjusted yield fallback3.4%Above median65th percentile · Cash FlowCensus ACS · ACS 5-yr 2020-2024Annual rent divided by price, net of a modeled vacancy, tax, capex, and management allowance: the core of the Cash Flow category and what the score is actually computed from. The unadjusted gross yield is shown elsewhere on this page.
Price to income5.0xBelow median35th percentile · Cash FlowZillow + ACS income · 2026-08-31Home price over local median income. Lower is cheaper relative to what people earn. Part of the Cash Flow category.
Population growth0.9%/yrAbove median71st percentile · GrowthCensus PEP · Census PEP 2020→2025 (vintage 2025) + Census PEP 2015→2025 (vintages 2019+2025)Census population trend for the place, capped at 4.5%/yr before scoring (diminishing returns above that rate): the heaviest factor in the Growth category.
Job growth0.8%/yrAbove median59th percentile · GrowthBLS LAUS (county) · BLS LAUS county annual 2019→2025 (pre-COVID anchor; 2025 is an 11-month average) + BLS LAUS county annual 2015→2025County employment trend, capped at 4.0%/yr before scoring (diminishing returns above that rate). A Growth-category factor.
Income growth1.6%/yrBottom 10%7th percentile · GrowthCensus ACS · ACS 5-yr 2020-2024Local median-income trend. A Growth-category factor.
Rent growthnot measured-Census ACS · ACS 5-yr 2020-2024A 40/60 blend of 3-year and 10-year rent trend (the model's own weighting). A Growth-category factor.
Home-value growth6.0%/yrTop quartile82nd percentile · GrowthZillow ZHVI · 3yr + 10yr to 2026-08-31A 40/60 blend of 3-year and 10-year price trend (the model's own weighting). A small Growth-category factor.
Violent crimenot measured-FBI Crime Data Explorer: no agency report for this placeReported violent crimes per 100,000 residents a year (the FBI's monthly agency rates, times 12). No agency reported this place to the FBI and no credible reference group exists, so the score drops this factor and Stability renormalizes over the rest. City-level data cannot resolve within-neighborhood risk.
Property crimenot measured-FBI Crime Data Explorer: no agency report for this placeReported property crimes per 100,000 residents a year. No agency reported this place to the FBI and no credible reference group exists, so the score drops this factor and Stability renormalizes over the rest.
Unemployment3.9%Above median61st percentile · StabilityBLS LAUS (county) · BLS LAUS county annual 2025 (11-month average)County unemployment rate. Lower is steadier, a Stability-category factor.
Rental vacancy fallback6.1%Below median37th percentile · StabilityModel cohort median (eligible county or state/population cohort); no city-specific observation. Published 2026-10-06Share of rentals empty. Lower means more pricing power. A Stability-category factor.
Property tax rate0.5%Top 10%94th percentile · StabilityCensus ACS B25103/B25077 · ACS 5-yr 2020-2024Median tax over median value. A direct drag on cash flow, scored in the Stability category as carrying-cost burden.
Months of supply fallback4.0 moBelow median29th percentile · StabilityModel cohort median (eligible county or state/population cohort); no city-specific observation. Published 2026-10-06Listings over sales pace. Under about 4 is a seller market, over 6 a buyer market. A Stability-category factor.
Days on marketnot measured-derivedHow fast homes sell. Lower means more liquidity and an easier exit. Shown for context, not scored.
Sale-to-list rationot measured-derivedSale price over asking. Above 100% means homes clear over ask. Shown for context, not scored.
Net domestic migration+14.4/1kTop 10%93rd percentileCensus PEP (county) · PEP vintage 2025Net people moving in or out of the county, per 1,000 residents. Shown for context, not scored.
Building permits7.2/1kAbove median67th percentileCensus BPS (county) · BPS 2025New-construction permits per 1,000 homes. More means more supply coming. Shown for context, not scored.
Rent burden32%Below median30th percentileCensus ACS B25071 · ACS 5-yr 2020-2024Median rent as a share of income. Higher means less headroom for increases. Shown for context, not scored.
Median year built1976Below median48th percentileCensus ACS B25035 · ACS 5-yr 2020-2024Age of the housing stock. Older stock carries more capex. Shown for context, not scored.
Max drawdown7%Top quartile84th percentileZillow ZHVI · 2026-08-31Worst peak-to-trough home-value decline on record. Shown for context, not scored.

Where to go next from Savannah

Every link below is this market's own data taken one step further: its neighbours in the ranking, the same numbers side by side, or the same numbers in a calculator you can change.

Nearby in the Tennessee rankings, and national look-alikes

  • Hartsville/Trousdale County, TNGrade B · score 55/100 · yield 3.0% · $337,600 · #1,210 national
  • Arlington, TNGrade B · score 55/100 · yield 7.1% · $407,320 · #1,224 nationalZillow ZHVI $195k (2000) to $407k (2026), +109%
  • Loudon, TNGrade B · score 55/100 · yield 5.1% · $499,640 · #1,269 nationalZillow ZHVI $154k (2000) to $500k (2026), +225%
  • Athens, TNGrade B · score 55/100 · yield 5.0% · $262,695 · #1,321 nationalZillow ZHVI $108k (2011) to $263k (2026), +144%
  • Florence, ALGrade B · score 55/100 · yield 6.6% · $216,557 · #1,229 nationalZillow ZHVI $106k (2010) to $217k (2026), +105%
  • Euclid, OHGrade B · score 55/100 · yield 9.3% · $151,177 · #1,231 nationalZillow ZHVI $77k (2000) to $151k (2026), +97%
  • Indian Harbour Beach, FLGrade B · score 55/100 · yield 6.2% · $454,286 · #1,228 nationalZillow ZHVI $111k (2000) to $454k (2026), +309%

All Tennessee cities →

Compare Savannah head to head

Underwrite a Savannah deal

  • Cap rateOpens on Savannah's own entry price and rent. Change either one.
  • Cash flow & DSCRMonthly cash flow and DSCR, prefilled with this market's numbers.
  • Mortgage paymentP&I on Savannah's entry price at the assumptions shown above.
  • All marketsCompare Savannah against 4,812 ranked cities.
  • Tennessee ZIP CodesEvery Tennessee ZIP Code area (Census ZCTAs), scored separately from the city rankings.
  • Ranked listsSix lists, each with a disclosed entry rule.

Ranked lists: Highest yield · Cheapest vs. income · Rent covers the mortgage · Under $200k · Fastest-growing · Most stable

For learning, not advice. A market screen from public data - not a forecast, not underwriting, not a recommendation to buy anywhere.