20 Cities Earning the Least Money for Real Estate Investors

Investing in real estate can be a financially savvy move; but, like any investment, it’s not without risk. If you’re buying a single-family home with the intention of renting it out, you need to be prepared for the possibility of irresponsible tenants, vacancies and potentially pricey maintenance costs. 

But you also need to be sure you’re investing in a location that is showing promise to appreciate. Unfortunately, some cities are showing the opposite. 

GOBankingRates analyzed cities across the U.S. to find the places where real estate investors are earning the least money. Here are the top 20 cities where single-family home values are dipping — or even nosediving.  

• Average single-family home price: $315,304 
• Percentage of homes sold below list price: 74.2% 
• Median price cut (percentage): 4.1% 
• Share of listings with price cuts: 24.9%

• Average single-family home price: $122,767 
• Percentage of homes sold below list price: 70.1%
• Median price cut (percentage): 5.2%
• Share of listings with price cuts: 24.5%

• Average single-family home price: $128,998 
• Percentage of homes sold below list price: 61.6%
• Median price cut (percentage): 3.3%
• Share of listings with price cuts: 27.0%

• Average single family home price: $119,022 
• Percentage of homes sold below list price: 67.9%
• Median price cut (percentage): 4.7%
• Share of listings with price cuts: 25.5%

• Average single-family home price: $396,438 
• Percentage of homes sold below list price: 64.9%
• Median price cut (percentage): 2.4%
• Share of listings with price cuts: 33.8%

• Average single-family home price: $185,437 
• Percentage of homes sold below list price: 57.7%
• Median price cut (percentage): 3.5%
• Share of listings with price cuts: 22.5%

• Average single-family home price: $138,989 
• Percentage of homes sold below list price: 62.8%
• Median price cut (percentage): 4.4%
• Share of listings with price cuts: 27.0%

• Average single-family home price: $151,005 
• Percentage of homes sold below list price: 63.5%
• Median price cut (percentage): 3.7%
• Share of listings with price cuts: 24.2%

• Average single-family home price: $109,069 
• Percentage of homes sold below list price: 72.5%
• Median price cut (percentage): 5.8%
• Share of listings with price cuts: 21.3%

• Average single-family home price: $314,804 
• Percentage of homes sold below list price: 70.0%
• Median price cut (percentage): 2.4%
• Share of listings with price cuts: 33.9%

• Average single-family home price: $232,661 
• Percentage of homes sold below list price: 67.3%
• Median price cut (percentage): 3.1%
• Share of listings with price cuts: 26.7%

• Average single-family home price: $184,404 
• Percentage of homes sold below list price: 72.9%
• Median price cut (percentage): 3.7%
• Share of listings with price cuts: 28.8%

• Average single-family home price: $379,462 
• Percentage of homes sold below list price: 68.2%
• Median price cut (percentage): 2.1%
• Share of listings with price cuts: 35.5%

• Average single-family home price: $408,342 
• Percentage of homes sold below list price: 78.5%
• Median price cut (percentage): 2.9%
• Share of listings with price cuts: 28.0%

• Average single-family home price: $550,856  
• Percentage of homes sold below list price: 64.4%
• Median price cut (percentage): 2.7%
• Share of listings with price cuts: 31.6%

• Average single-family home price: $241,154 
• Percentage of homes sold below list price: 79.7%
• Median price cut (percentage): 3.6%
• Share of listings with price cuts: 29.6%

• Average single-family home price: $419,564 
• Percentage of homes sold below list price: 81.2%
• Median price cut (percentage): 3.3%
• Share of listings with price cuts: 24.1%

• Average single-family home price: $169,043 
• Percentage of homes sold below list price: 79.4%
• Median price cut (percentage): 4.0%
• Share of listings with price cuts: 30.1%

• Average single-family home price: $341,398 
• Percentage of homes sold below list price: 81.8%
• Median price cut (percentage): 2.9%
• Share of listings with price cuts: 29.1%

• Average single-family home price: $186,296 
• Percentage of homes sold below list price: 66.3%
• Median price cut (percentage): 2.8%
• Share of listings with price cuts: 25.8%

Methodology: For this study, GOBankingRates analyzed cities to find the places where real estate investors are earning the least money. The average single-family home value was sourced from Zillow Home Value Index for September 2024. Shares of listing with price cuts, the median percentage price cut from listing prices, the percent of homes sold above listings, and percentage of homes sold below listings were all sourced from Zillow Research Data. The percentage of homes sold below listing price was scored and weighted at 1.00, the listings with price cuts were scored and weighted at 1.00, the home forecast for November 2024 was scored and weighted at 0.50, the home forecast for August 2025 was scored and weighted at 0.50, and the median percentage price cut from listing was scored and weighted at 0.50. All the scores were summed and sorted to show the places where real estate investors will earn the least. All data was collected on and is up to date as of Oct. 4, 2024.