State rental market analysis · ME
Maine rental markets
9 tracked cities over 20,000 population, 9 ranked and summarized by their median Overall. Every number traces to Census, Zillow and BLS. All states ranked →
Browse every Maine ZIP Code area → · the full server-rendered index for this state.
Part of the New England Census division (Northeast region).
The honest read
Maine ranks #15 of 51 states for rental investing, with a median Overall of 52.2/100 across its ranked cities, above the national median. 9 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 9 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 | 5.6% | not measured |
| Rent growth | Growth | 4.9% | not measured |
| Home value growth | Growth | 5.5% | not measured |
| Population growth | Growth | 0.6% | not measured |
| Job growth | Growth | 0.3% | not measured |
| Price-to-income | Cash Flow | 6.1× | not measured |
| Unemployment | Stability | 2.4% | not measured |
| Rental demand | Stability | 45% renters · 345.9% vacancy | not measured |
| Income growth | Growth | 6.4% | not measured |
Every city in Maine, ranked
Led by Westbrook at 66/100. Click any column to re-sort; every city links to its full shown-math breakdown.
| ME rank | City | Grade | Cash Flow | Growth | Stability | Typical home value | Gross yield | National rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Westbrook | 66 | C | B | B | $464,730 | 6.2% | #134 |
| 2 | Sanford | 56 | C | B | B | $378,830 | 5.6% | #448 |
| 3 | Auburn | 54 | C | C | B | $333,086 | 5.7% | #587 |
| 4 | South Portland | 53 | C | C | B | $532,834 | 5.9% | #613 |
| 5 | Lewiston | 52 | C | C | B | $305,729 | 6.0% | #655 |
| 6 | Saco | 45 | D | C | B | $531,575 | 4.6% | #1049 |
| 7 | Bangor | 40 | C | D | D | $291,537 | 6.5% | #1295 |
| 8 | Portland | 39 | D | C | B | $566,902 | 5.2% | #1298 |
| 9 | Biddeford | 38 | F | C | B | $517,712 | 4.6% | #1356 |
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.
ZIP markets in Maine
427 Census ZIP Codes (ZCTAs) in Maine · 228 data-eligible for subscores. These are sub-city government areas ranked separately from the Maine 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 Maine
Ranked by the overall Rental Investor ZIP Score. The # is each ZIP Code's canonical ME state rank; the smaller figure is its national rank. Separate from the Maine city table and not directly comparable to it.
| ME rank | ZIP Code | Overallgrade · national | Key metric |
|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | 04092Westbrook | A 66#1,302 nat | 4.4%Survey yield |
| #2 | 04330Augusta | B 63#2,335 nat | 5.3%Survey yield |
| #3 | 04073Sanford | B 63#2,382 nat | 4.9%Survey yield |
| #4 | 04106South Portland | B 61#2,846 nat | 5.0%Survey yield |
| #5 | 04048Lake Arrowhead | B 61#3,235 nat | 7.8%Survey yield |
| #6 | 04901Waterville | B 60#3,443 nat | 5.8%Survey yield |
| #7 | 04074Oak Hill | B 60#3,489 nat | 4.2%Survey yield |
| #8 | 04093 | B 60#3,533 nat | 5.4%Survey yield |
| #9 | 04038Gorham | B 60#3,574 nat | 4.4%Survey yield |
| #10 | 04260 | B 59#3,952 nat | 3.9%Survey yield |
| #11 | 04938Farmington | B 59#4,006 nat | 6.4%Survey yield |
| #12 | 04021Cumberland Center | B 59#4,054 nat | 5.3%Survey yield |
Top affordability ZIP Codes in Maine
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 | 04628 | 82#1,025 nat | 7.5%Survey yield |
| 2 | 04920Bingham | 77#1,752 nat | 7.8%Survey yield |
| 3 | 04414Brownville Junction | 76#1,832 nat | 8.7%Survey yield |
| 4 | 04453 | 75#1,996 nat | 7.4%Survey yield |
| 5 | 04932 | 74#2,216 nat | 8.5%Survey yield |
| 6 | 04051 | 74#2,233 nat | 5.8%Survey yield |
| 7 | 04929 | 73#2,464 nat | 9.6%Survey yield |
| 8 | 04406 | 71#2,755 nat | 7.7%Survey yield |
| 9 | 04987 | 69#3,320 nat | 7.1%Survey yield |
| 10 | 04449 | 68#3,400 nat | 8.4%Survey yield |
| 11 | 04055Naples | 67#3,597 nat | 6.8%Survey yield |
| 12 | 04048Lake Arrowhead | 67#3,617 nat | 7.8%Survey yield |
Deepest rental-market ZIP Codes in Maine
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 | 04101Portland | 80#213 nat | 3.0%Survey yield |
| 2 | 04950Madison | 79#318 nat | 5.8%Survey yield |
| 3 | 04240Lewiston | 78#510 nat | 5.0%Survey yield |
| 4 | 04005Biddeford | 77#680 nat | 3.9%Survey yield |
| 5 | 04750Limestone | 76#759 nat | 9.9%Survey yield |
| 6 | 04938Farmington | 76#803 nat | 6.4%Survey yield |
| 7 | 04330Augusta | 75#893 nat | 5.3%Survey yield |
| 8 | 04210Auburn | 75#906 nat | 4.4%Survey yield |
| 9 | 04254Livermore Falls | 72#1,468 nat | 7.0%Survey yield |
| 10 | 04412Brewer | 72#1,511 nat | 5.3%Survey yield |
| 11 | 04901Waterville | 72#1,549 nat | 5.8%Survey yield |
| 12 | 04769Presque Isle | 72#1,593 nat | 7.4%Survey yield |