10 Challenging Cities to Invest in Rental Properties in 2022

Residential rental properties can be a great way to build wealth, and for some markets, things have been really great of late. For others, not so much.

With supply (in the form of people) and demand (as reflected by rent growth) in mind, we used census-based data from World Population Review and rental data from Zumper to choose 10 cities that might be the most challenging for residential rental investment in the year ahead.

Here's our baseline: ApartmentList.com says the national median rent jumped 17.8% since January. Meanwhile, the population of U.S. metro areas altogether grew by 9% from 2010 to 2020.

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St. Louis has been losing population every year since 2012, including 2,843 people from 2020 to 2021, and now stands at 294,890 residents. Zumper says the average rent for a one-bedroom apartment has fallen 15% to $935 in just a year.

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The population of Detroit has declined by 6.95% -- nearly 50,000 people since 2010, including 0.44% in the past year -- to reach 664,139. Zumper says the average rent for a one-bedroom apartment has declined 11% in the past year to $1,050.

Since 2010, Wheeling's population has declined by 8.76% (2,496 people) to 25,990, including 0.84% (220 people) in 2021 alone. Zumper says the average rent for a one-bedroom apartment has declined 8% in the past year to $570.

Wichita has added 8,984 residents, or 2.35%, to its population since 2010. That includes 0.18% (or 707 people) in the past year. But Zumper says the average rent for a one-bedroom apartment has decreased 6% in the past year to $620.

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Warwick's population has grown by 0.05% (35 people) in the past year but has fallen by 1.93% (1,592 people) since 2010. Now, the city stands at 81,080 residents. Zumper says the average rent for a one-bedroom apartment has declined 6% in the past year to $1,175.

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Cincinnati has grown by 3.48% in the past 11 years to a population of 303,940, including adding 1,663 residents (0.54%) in the past year. But Zumper says the average rent for a one-bedroom apartment has declined by 3% in the past year to $925 a month.

Milwaukee has lost 1.20% of its population since 2010 and 0.21% (1,218 people) in the past year to stand at 587,721 residents. Zumper says the average rent for a one-bedroom apartment has risen by 1% in the past year to $1,200.

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The population of Louisville has grown by 3.11% since 2010 but fell 0.14% (857 people) to 615,924 in 2021 and was at 617,638 in 2018. Zumper says the average rent for a one-bedroom apartment has grown by 1% in the past year to $949.

Baton Rouge has lost 5.74% of its population (13,165 people) since 2010 and 1,954 in the past year alone to now stand at 216,328 residents. Zumper says the average rent for a one-bedroom apartment rose by 2% in the past year to $825.

Buffalo, New York, has lost 2.69% of its population -- or 7,020 people -- since 2010 and 597 in the past year alone to now stand at 254,290 residents. Zumper says the average rent for a one-bedroom apartment has risen by 2% in the past year to $1,040.

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Each of these cities has had long periods of prosperity and growth and still contains opportunities waiting to be uncovered. But there are reasons the population is shrinking, and rental rates are lagging. And every market is different. Discover what's impeding demand in your target neighborhood, and you could be off to a great start in choosing the right investment at the right time -- or, as importantly, sidestepping a potential loss.

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