State rental market analysis · ND
North Dakota rental markets
8 tracked cities over 20,000 population, 8 ranked and summarized by their median Overall. Every number traces to Census, Zillow and BLS. All states ranked →
Browse every North Dakota ZIP Code area → · the full server-rendered index for this state.
Part of the West North Central Census division (Midwest region).
The honest read
North Dakota ranks #32 of 51 states for rental investing, with a median Overall of 44.5/100 across its ranked cities, below the national median. 8 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 8 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 | 4.3% | not measured |
| Rent growth | Growth | 4.6% | not measured |
| Home value growth | Growth | 3.4% | not measured |
| Population growth | Growth | 1.1% | not measured |
| Job growth | Growth | 0.9% | not measured |
| Price-to-income | Cash Flow | 4.6× | not measured |
| Unemployment | Stability | 1.9% | not measured |
| Rental demand | Stability | 46% renters · 821.8% vacancy | not measured |
| Income growth | Growth | 4.1% | not measured |
Every city in North Dakota, ranked
Led by West Fargo at 56/100. Click any column to re-sort; every city links to its full shown-math breakdown.
| ND rank | City | Grade | Cash Flow | Growth | Stability | Typical home value | Gross yield | National rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | West Fargo | 56 | C | B | C | $360,804 | 4.3% | #443 |
| 2 | Mandan | 49 | D | C | C | $352,532 | 4.7% | #803 |
| 3 | Grand Forks | 45 | D | C | C | $305,484 | 4.7% | #1032 |
| 4 | Bismarck | 45 | D | C | C | $383,424 | 4.2% | #1053 |
| 5 | Fargo | 44 | D | B | C | $326,637 | 4.0% | #1064 |
| 6 | Minot | 43 | C | D | C | $282,641 | 5.0% | #1132 |
| 7 | Dickinson | 36 | C | D | C | $334,159 | 4.6% | #1448 |
| 8 | Williston | 34 | D | D | C | $378,684 | 4.0% | #1527 |
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 North Dakota
389 Census ZIP Codes (ZCTAs) in North Dakota · 110 data-eligible for subscores. These are sub-city government areas ranked separately from the North Dakota 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 North Dakota
Ranked by the overall Rental Investor ZIP Score. The # is each ZIP Code's canonical ND state rank; the smaller figure is its national rank. Separate from the North Dakota city table and not directly comparable to it.
| ND rank | ZIP Code | Overallgrade · national | Key metric |
|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | 58078West Fargo | A 72#314 nat | 4.1%Survey yield |
| #2 | 58104Fargo | A 70#522 nat | 3.7%Survey yield |
| #3 | 58103Fargo | A 68#800 nat | 4.2%Survey yield |
| #4 | 58504Bismarck | A 66#1,346 nat | 3.9%Survey yield |
| #5 | 58503Bismarck | A 65#1,688 nat | 3.5%Survey yield |
| #6 | 58102Fargo | A 64#1,765 nat | 4.1%Survey yield |
| #7 | 58047Horace | A 64#1,801 nat | 6.0%Survey yield |
| #8 | 58501Bismarck | B 63#2,423 nat | 3.9%Survey yield |
| #8 | 58554Mandan | B 63#2,423 nat | 4.7%Survey yield |
| #10 | 58201Grand Forks | B 61#3,063 nat | 4.1%Survey yield |
| #11 | 58012Casselton | B 60#3,314 nat | 3.4%Survey yield |
| #12 | 58622Belfield | B 57#4,790 nat | 5.3%Survey yield |
Top affordability ZIP Codes in North Dakota
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 | 58316Shell Valley | 91#320 nat | 7.3%Survey yield |
| 2 | 58568Selfridge | 89#445 nat | 7.0%Survey yield |
| 3 | 58243Hoople | 86#662 nat | 10.2%Survey yield |
| 4 | 58852Tioga | 75#2,115 nat | 6.5%Survey yield |
| 5 | 58533Elgin | 73#2,382 nat | 8.4%Survey yield |
| 6 | 58757Mandaree | 73#2,382 nat | 5.1%Survey yield |
| 7 | 58740Glenburn | 73#2,464 nat | 8.2%Survey yield |
| 8 | 58759Max | 72#2,652 nat | 7.5%Survey yield |
| 9 | 58256Manvel | 71#2,780 nat | 7.5%Survey yield |
| 10 | 58413Ashley | 71#2,881 nat | 10.9%Survey yield |
| 11 | 58529Carson | 70#2,960 nat | 8.8%Survey yield |
| 12 | 58770Parshall | 69#3,281 nat | 5.1%Survey yield |
Deepest rental-market ZIP Codes in North Dakota
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 | 58301Devils Lake | 80#200 nat | 4.2%Survey yield |
| 2 | 58104Fargo | 77#680 nat | 3.7%Survey yield |
| 3 | 58538Cannon Ball | 76#711 nat | 6.1%Survey yield |
| 4 | 58770Parshall | 75#945 nat | 5.1%Survey yield |
| 5 | 58012Casselton | 72#1,523 nat | 3.4%Survey yield |
| 6 | 58040Gwinner | 70#1,912 nat | 5.2%Survey yield |
| 7 | 58568Selfridge | 69#2,262 nat | 7.0%Survey yield |
| 8 | 58270Park River | 68#2,478 nat | 6.1%Survey yield |
| 9 | 58103Fargo | 68#2,669 nat | 4.2%Survey yield |
| 10 | 58075Wahpeton | 64#3,956 nat | 4.9%Survey yield |
| 11 | 58201Grand Forks | 63#4,343 nat | 4.1%Survey yield |
| 12 | 58722Burlington | 62#4,642 nat | 5.0%Survey yield |