State rental market analysis · CT
Connecticut rental markets
25 tracked cities over 20,000 population, 18 ranked and summarized by their median Overall. Every number traces to Census, Zillow and BLS. All states ranked →
Browse every Connecticut ZIP Code area → · the full server-rendered index for this state.
Part of the New England Census division (Northeast region).
The honest read
Connecticut ranks #38 of 51 states for rental investing, with a median Overall of 42/100 across its ranked cities, below the national median. 18 ranked cities roll up into this grade.
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 18 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 | 6.5% | not measured |
| Rent growth | Growth | 5.2% | not measured |
| Home value growth | Growth | 7.0% | not measured |
| Population growth | Growth | 0.5% | not measured |
| Job growth | Growth | 0.3% | not measured |
| Price-to-income | Cash Flow | 5.6× | not measured |
| Unemployment | Stability | 3.2% | not measured |
| Rental demand | Stability | 52% renters · 468.2% vacancy | not measured |
| Income growth | Growth | 4.7% | not measured |
Every city in Connecticut, ranked
Led by Shelton at 52/100. Click any column to re-sort; every city links to its full shown-math breakdown.
| CT rank | City | Grade | Cash Flow | Growth | Stability | Typical home value | Gross yield | National rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Shelton | 52 | C | C | C | $569,177 | 5.6% | #668 |
| 2 | Danbury | 51 | C | C | C | $495,907 | 6.0% | #695 |
| 3 | Hartford | 47 | B | D | D | $203,328 | 9.6% | #922 |
| 4 | Milford | 47 | C | C | C | $514,036 | 5.9% | #925 |
| 5 | New Haven | 46 | C | C | C | $338,157 | 7.6% | #966 |
| 6 | Bristol | 46 | D | C | C | $352,168 | 5.7% | #986 |
| 7 | Middletown | 45 | C | D | C | $371,380 | 6.4% | #1026 |
| 8 | Meriden | 43 | C | C | C | $328,476 | 6.5% | #1129 |
| 9 | New London | 42 | D | C | B | $329,727 | 5.8% | #1167 |
| 10 | West Haven | 42 | D | D | B | $368,011 | 6.4% | #1193 |
| 11 | Naugatuck | 40 | C | D | D | $357,153 | 6.8% | #1278 |
| 12 | Bridgeport | 40 | D | C | C | $364,428 | 6.9% | #1285 |
| 13 | Norwalk | 38 | D | C | C | $677,124 | 4.8% | #1339 |
| 14 | Norwich | 38 | C | D | D | $307,014 | 7.2% | #1367 |
| 15 | Stamford | 37 | D | C | C | $728,197 | 4.9% | #1418 |
| 16 | Torrington | 34 | D | D | C | $303,023 | 6.4% | #1546 |
| 17 | New Britain | 33 | D | C | D | $311,746 | 6.2% | #1578 |
| 18 | Waterbury | 32 | D | C | D | $287,970 | 6.4% | #1604 |
Data as of: Zillow ZHVI/ZORI through the latest monthly release · Census ACS 5-yr 2019–2023 · Census PEP July 2024 · BLS LAUS county 2023 annual. Generated 2026-09-01. Methodology & limitations · underwrite any specific deal with the free calculators.
Limited-data cities in Connecticut
These 7 cities lack enough measured factors to rank, so they are excluded from the state grade; their pages show exactly what could be measured.
ZIP markets in Connecticut
288 Census ZIP Codes (ZCTAs) in Connecticut · 213 data-eligible for subscores. These are sub-city government areas ranked separately from the Connecticut 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), a newer release than the ACS 2019–2023 figures the city table above uses; the same measure can legitimately disagree between the two.
Best overall ZIP Codes in Connecticut
Ranked by the overall Rental Investor ZIP Score. The # is each ZIP Code's canonical CT state rank; the smaller figure is its national rank. Separate from the Connecticut city table and not directly comparable to it.
| CT rank | ZIP Code | Overallgrade · national | Key metric |
|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | 06042Manchester | A 68#906 nat | 8.8%Survey yield |
| #2 | 06810Danbury | A 65#1,715 nat | 5.6%Survey yield |
| #3 | 06010Bristol | B 63#2,231 nat | 5.8%Survey yield |
| #4 | 06854Norwalk | B 63#2,265 nat | 5.3%Survey yield |
| #5 | 06901Stamford | B 62#2,510 nat | 6.4%Survey yield |
| #6 | 06457Middletown | B 62#2,623 nat | 5.9%Survey yield |
| #7 | 06032Newington | B 61#2,846 nat | 5.2%Survey yield |
| #8 | 06111Newington | B 61#2,932 nat | 5.9%Survey yield |
| #9 | 06040Manchester | B 61#3,109 nat | 6.4%Survey yield |
| #10 | 06119West Hartford | B 60#3,370 nat | 5.6%Survey yield |
| #11 | 06062Bristol | B 60#3,661 nat | 5.3%Survey yield |
| #12 | 06902Stamford | B 59#3,727 nat | 5.2%Survey yield |
Top affordability ZIP Codes in Connecticut
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 | 06796West Cornwall | 50#9,517 nat | 5.5%Survey yield |
| 2 | 06282Lake Bungee | 50#9,566 nat | 6.3%Survey yield |
| 3 | 06088 | 48#10,241 nat | 8.6%Survey yield |
| 4 | 06380Norwich | 48#10,241 nat | 7.9%Survey yield |
| 5 | 06120Hartford | 48#10,335 nat | 8.3%Survey yield |
| 6 | 06042Manchester | 48#10,520 nat | 8.8%Survey yield |
| 7 | 06096Windsor Locks | 47#11,061 nat | 6.5%Survey yield |
| 8 | 06002Blue Hills | 46#11,178 nat | 7.9%Survey yield |
| 9 | 06280South Windham | 46#11,178 nat | 8.3%Survey yield |
| 10 | 06112Hartford | 46#11,261 nat | 7.5%Survey yield |
| 11 | 06340Conning Towers-Nautilus Park | 45#11,890 nat | 6.5%Survey yield |
| 12 | 06082Hazardville | 44#12,188 nat | 7.5%Survey yield |
Deepest rental-market ZIP Codes in Connecticut
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 | 06607Bridgeport | 83#43 nat | 7.2%Survey yield |
| 2 | 06605Bridgeport | 83#47 nat | 5.3%Survey yield |
| 3 | 06089Weatogue | 82#118 nat | 7.1%Survey yield |
| 4 | 06515New Haven | 81#194 nat | 5.1%Survey yield |
| 5 | 06106Hartford | 79#329 nat | 7.1%Survey yield |
| 6 | 06332 | 78#407 nat | 6.3%Survey yield |
| 7 | 06018Canaan | 78#479 nat | 5.0%Survey yield |
| 8 | 06604Bridgeport | 78#491 nat | 6.7%Survey yield |
| 9 | 06320New London | 78#518 nat | 6.3%Survey yield |
| 10 | 06854Norwalk | 77#559 nat | 5.3%Survey yield |
| 11 | 06226Willimantic | 77#573 nat | 6.9%Survey yield |
| 12 | 06606Bridgeport | 77#662 nat | 6.3%Survey yield |