State rental market analysis · WV
West Virginia rental markets
26 tracked cities over 5,000 population, 26 ranked and summarized by their median Overall; 0 of 24 evaluable cities pass the modeled Buy & Hold screen. Every number traces to Census, Zillow and BLS. Compare state coverage and results →
Browse every West Virginia ZIP Code area → · the full server-rendered index for this state.
Part of the South Atlantic Census division (South region).
The honest read
West Virginia ranks #27 of 37 coverage-eligible states for rental investing, with a median Overall of 43.7/100 across its ranked cities, below the national median. 26 ranked cities roll up into this grade. Its strongest factor is affordability (price-to-income): 3.3×, 3rd of 51, backed by gross rental yield (6th).
The biggest drag is population growth: -0.4%, 51st of 51. A state 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 26 ranked cities in this state. The national rank compares all 51 states 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 | State value | National rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gross rent yield | Cash Flow | 7.7% | #6 of 51 |
| Rent growth | Growth | 4.1% | #28 of 51 |
| Home value growth | Growth | 4.0% | #25 of 51 |
| Population growth | Growth | -0.4% | #51 of 51 |
| Job growth | Growth | -0.2% | #48 of 51 |
| Price-to-income | Cash Flow | 3.3× | #3 of 51 |
| Unemployment | Stability | 4.1% | #30 of 51 |
| Rental demand | Stability | 38% renters · 8.0% vacancy | two-part measure |
| Income growth | Growth | 5.0% | #25 of 51 |
Every city in West Virginia, ranked
Led by Ranson corporation at 83/100. Click any column to re-sort; every city links to its full shown-math breakdown.
| WV rank | City | Grade | Cash Flow | Growth | Stability | Typical home value | Gross yield | National rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 med | Ranson corporation | 83 | A | B | B | $242,700 | 7.6% | #3 |
| 2 | Hurricane | 64 | C | B | B | $277,774 | 5.2% | #396 |
| 3 | Martinsburg | 64 | C | B | C | $312,100 | 6.5% | #407 |
| 4 med | Buckhannon | 60 | A | D | B | $162,133 | 6.7% | #704 |
| 5 med | Charles Town | 57 | D | B | B | $377,700 | 3.5% | #1028 |
| 6 med | Bluefield | 55 | A | D | C | $119,264 | 9.2% | #1308 |
| 7 med | Oak Hill | 49 | A | F | B | $157,519 | 8.6% | #2141 |
| 8 | Huntington | 48 | A | D | D | $144,450 | 8.6% | #2305 |
| 9 med | Dunbar | 47 | A | F | B | $123,709 | 9.4% | #2417 |
| 10 med | Moundsville | 47 | A | F | B | $128,275 | 8.4% | #2444 |
| 11 | Bridgeport | 47 | C | D | C | $304,103 | 5.4% | #2481 |
| 12 | Fairmont | 46 | A | D | C | $194,875 | 7.4% | #2638 |
| 13 | Beckley | 44 | A | F | B | $151,973 | 8.9% | #2816 |
| 14 med | New Martinsville | 44 | A | F | C | $139,433 | 6.4% | #2903 |
| 15 | Morgantown | 42 | C | D | C | $285,604 | 5.7% | #3181 |
| 16 | Charleston | 42 | A | D | D | $166,696 | 9.9% | #3193 |
| 17 | Parkersburg | 41 | A | D | D | $151,152 | 8.1% | #3335 |
| 18 med | Nitro | 39 | A | F | C | $143,839 | 8.8% | #3508 |
| 19 | Princeton | 39 | C | D | C | $173,792 | 5.5% | #3531 |
| 20 | Weirton | 38 | A | F | C | $149,807 | 6.7% | #3648 |
| 21 | South Charleston | 37 | B | F | C | $175,312 | 6.5% | #3719 |
| 22 | Clarksburg | 36 | A | F | D | $112,463 | 11.1% | #3814 |
| 23 med | St. Albans | 36 | A | F | B | $153,421 | 7.9% | #3859 |
| 24 med | Vienna | 35 | B | F | C | $191,235 | 6.3% | #3904 |
| 25 | Wheeling | 32 | B | F | D | $153,248 | 6.5% | #4154 |
| 26 med | Elkins | 28 | B | F | C | $172,047 | 7.1% | #4400 |
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.
ZIP markets in West Virginia
738 Census ZIP Codes (ZCTAs) in West Virginia · 181 data-eligible for subscores. These are sub-city government areas ranked separately from the West Virginia city table. The overall Rental Investor ZIP Score leaderboard leads; the two component subscores (affordability, rental-market context) follow as independent percentiles. ZIP ranks are shown within the ZIP universe only, never mixed with, and not directly comparable to, city ranks. Vintage: the Key metric column is Census ACS 2020–2024 (5-year), the same release the city table above uses; the geographies differ, so the same measure can still disagree between the two.
Best overall ZIP Codes in West Virginia
Ranked by the overall Rental Investor ZIP Score. The # is each ZIP Code's canonical WV state rank; the smaller figure is its national rank. Separate from the West Virginia city table and not directly comparable to it.
| WV rank | ZIP Code | Overallgrade · national | Key metric |
|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | 25404Martinsburg | A 78#4 nat | 6.3%Survey yield |
| #2 | 25438Ranson corporation | A 74#106 nat | 5.1%Survey yield |
| #3 | 25414Charles Town | A 74#147 nat | 3.3%Survey yield |
| #4 | 25419Falling Waters | A 73#155 nat | 5.4%Survey yield |
| #5 | 25428Inwood | A 73#181 nat | 6.7%Survey yield |
| #6 | 25405Martinsburg | A 71#343 nat | 7.5%Survey yield |
| #7 | 25401Martinsburg | A 70#551 nat | 5.8%Survey yield |
| #8 | 25427Hedgesville | A 70#584 nat | 4.9%Survey yield |
| #9 | 25413Inwood | A 68#875 nat | 5.8%Survey yield |
| #10 | 25425Shannondale | A 68#962 nat | 4.1%Survey yield |
| #11 | 25430Ranson corporation | A 67#1,098 nat | 5.2%Survey yield |
| #12 | 25411Bath (Berkeley Springs) | B 62#2,611 nat | 4.0%Survey yield |
Top affordability ZIP Codes in West Virginia
State-scoped leaders on the affordability subscore only (national rank shown is within that subscore’s data-eligible universe). Substantially an inverse housing-cost signal: a component of the overall score, not a predicted return.
| # | ZIP Code | Affordability | Key metric |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 24892War | 100#1 nat | 19.7%Survey yield |
| 2 | 25621Gilbert | 97#68 nat | 10.9%Survey yield |
| 3 | 26288Addison (Webster Springs) | 96#71 nat | 10.6%Survey yield |
| 4 | 26812 | 95#108 nat | 9.2%Survey yield |
| 5 | 26610Birch River | 95#122 nat | 11.7%Survey yield |
| 6 | 25951Hinton | 94#147 nat | 8.8%Survey yield |
| 7 | 25506West Hamlin | 94#168 nat | 10.0%Survey yield |
| 8 | 25674Kermit | 93#187 nat | 9.8%Survey yield |
| 9 | 26031Benwood | 93#195 nat | 12.4%Survey yield |
| 10 | 26250Belington | 92#242 nat | 8.9%Survey yield |
| 11 | 26206Cowen | 92#256 nat | 10.7%Survey yield |
| 12 | 26351Glenville | 92#265 nat | 10.0%Survey yield |
Deepest rental-market ZIP Codes in West Virginia
State-scoped leaders on the rental-market-context subscore only (national rank shown is within that subscore’s data-eligible universe). Rental depth/tightness: a separate component, never combined here with affordability.
| # | ZIP Code | Rental market | Key metric |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 24892War | 81#187 nat | 19.7%Survey yield |
| 2 | 25401Martinsburg | 80#244 nat | 5.8%Survey yield |
| 3 | 25285 | 80#260 nat | 4.1%Survey yield |
| 4 | 26716 | 77#662 nat | 7.7%Survey yield |
| 5 | 25064Dunbar | 73#1,221 nat | 9.2%Survey yield |
| 6 | 24740Princeton | 73#1,242 nat | 7.2%Survey yield |
| 7 | 26134Belmont | 73#1,308 nat | 4.6%Survey yield |
| 8 | 26447 | 73#1,308 nat | 4.1%Survey yield |
| 9 | 25880Bradley | 72#1,468 nat | 9.8%Survey yield |
| 10 | 25404Martinsburg | 71#1,627 nat | 6.3%Survey yield |
| 11 | 25506West Hamlin | 71#1,854 nat | 10.0%Survey yield |
| 12 | 25705Huntington | 69#2,178 nat | 7.1%Survey yield |