Queens County

Queens sits at a 3.18% cap rate with a gross rent-to-price ratio of 0.049, which places it squarely in appreciation territory, not cash-flow territory. At a $737,653 median price and $3,008 median monthly rent, the numbers don't pencil for conventional leveraged cash flow: the model shows negative $1,912 per month on a 20% down payment at 6.85%, producing a cash-on-cash return of -13.52%. That's not a rounding error or an aggressive assumption, it's the arithmetic of a market where prices have risen faster than rents for years. The 5.55% year-over-year home price gain confirms where the market's energy is focused. Queens scores 88 out of 100 on appreciation and 43 on cash flow, and those two numbers tell the whole story before you underwrite a single deal.

This market is not built for the yield-focused buyer who needs month-one positive cash flow. The leveraged investor running a standard 25% expense ratio on top of a $3,867 mortgage payment is looking at deep negative carry from day one, and there is no realistic rent increase or vacancy assumption that closes that gap at today's rates and prices. Where Queens can make sense is for the appreciation buyer with a long hold horizon and the balance sheet to absorb negative carry, or the value-add operator who can acquire at a discount to the median, force appreciation through renovation, and either refinance into better leverage or sell into a market that has historically rewarded price gains. The 5.55% YoY appreciation rate is meaningful over a 7-to-10-year hold, and with a population of 2.36 million, the demand base is as large as most mid-size American cities. The affordability index of 15 out of 100, while it signals that Queens is expensive relative to local incomes, also signals that renter demand is structural: at a median household income of $82,431, homeownership at these price levels is out of reach for most residents, which anchors rental demand.

At $1,205 per month in combined tax and insurance alone, carry costs in Queens deserve serious attention in your underwrite. The state-average effective property tax rate used here is 1.72%, which the Tax Foundation classifies as high, and that rate applied to the median price produces $12,688 in annual property tax, or roughly $1,057 per month just on taxes. Combined with $148 per month in insurance, tax and insurance together consume 40% of gross rent before you've touched principal, interest, maintenance, or vacancy. That 1.72% is a state-average estimate, and county and township rates in New York can vary materially, so verify the actual assessed rate and equalization ratio for any specific address. In a market already running negative cash-on-cash, a higher-than-average effective rate on a specific parcel can shift a deal from marginally manageable to genuinely problematic.

The risk profile in Queens is concentrated around two factors visible in the data. First, price-to-income compression: at a median home price of $737,653 against a median household income of $82,431, the price-to-income multiple is nearly 9x. That level of compression doesn't reverse quickly, but it does limit the pool of potential buyers if you need to exit, and it constrains rent growth since tenant incomes set a ceiling on what the market can bear. Second, New York's regulatory environment for landlords is among the most tenant-protective in the country, which is not reflected in a single number here but is a real operational cost and risk that any serious buyer-hold investor in Queens must underwrite. Rent stabilization, eviction procedures, and local housing court dynamics all affect effective yield in ways the cap rate doesn't capture.

Comparing Queens to its neighbors clarifies the trade-offs. Rockland County at a $724,554 median price and a 0.049 rent-to-price ratio essentially matches Queens on yield while coming in slightly cheaper and scoring a 51 overall versus Queens' 50. Rockland doesn't offer the same appreciation score, but for an investor already accepting negative carry and betting on long-term price gains, the lower entry price reduces the absolute dollar risk. Westchester County at $824,579 carries a worse rent-to-price ratio of 0.044, a higher absolute price, and only a marginally different overall score of 49, so it's harder to justify over Queens unless you have a specific thesis on a Westchester submarket. Richmond County (Staten Island) comes in cheaper at $701,776 but delivers a weaker rent-to-price ratio of 0.041 and scores 48 overall, meaning lower yield and lower appreciation momentum combined. Kings County (Brooklyn) at $915,205 median and a 0.046 rent-to-price ratio is more expensive than Queens with a worse yield and a lower overall score of 47. Queens wins the neighbor comparison on the combination of appreciation momentum and rent-to-price ratio: if you're going to accept the negative carry inherent in all of these New York City-area markets, Queens at least offers the best blend of rental yield and appreciation upside among the options presented. Choose it over Rockland primarily if your thesis is specifically tied to NYC access and the demand dynamics that come with it; choose Rockland if you want a modestly cheaper entry and are less conviction-driven on city-specific appreciation.