{"area":{"county":"Bamberg County","state":"SC","stateName":"South Carolina","slug":"bamberg-sc","metro":null},"homeValue":{"series":[{"date":"2021-04-01","value":79734},{"date":"2021-07-01","value":83072},{"date":"2021-10-01","value":87696},{"date":"2022-01-01","value":91571},{"date":"2022-04-01","value":95785},{"date":"2022-07-01","value":97800},{"date":"2022-10-01","value":98153},{"date":"2023-01-01","value":99956},{"date":"2023-04-01","value":101749},{"date":"2023-07-01","value":104227},{"date":"2023-10-01","value":106618},{"date":"2024-01-01","value":108396},{"date":"2024-04-01","value":109047},{"date":"2024-07-01","value":109632},{"date":"2024-10-01","value":112188},{"date":"2025-01-01","value":112801},{"date":"2025-04-01","value":113234},{"date":"2025-07-01","value":114184},{"date":"2025-10-01","value":114388},{"date":"2026-01-01","value":114630},{"date":"2026-04-01","value":115923}],"latest":115923,"yoy":2.374728438454881,"fiveYr":45.38716231469637,"sinceStart":349.9941772446722,"modeled":true},"rent":{"series":[{"date":"2026-11-01","value":889}],"latest":889,"yoy":null,"fiveYr":null,"sinceStart":null,"modeled":true},"census":{"medianIncome":44370,"population":13042,"povertyRate":24.295717309884385,"medianHomeValue":97800,"medianGrossRent":815,"medianPropertyTax":811},"hud":{"county":"Bamberg County","year":"2027","perUnit":889,"bedrooms":2,"estimated":false,"baseBedrooms":2},"crime":{"scope":"state","state":"South Carolina","period":"10-2024 to 09-2026","window":{"from":"10-2024","to":"09-2026","fellBack":false},"violentCrime":{"total":40077,"ratePer100k":359.7399337985887},"propertyCrime":{"total":176665,"ratePer100k":1585.7837513917627},"note":"State-level totals from the FBI CDE summarized offense endpoint."},"crimeVintage":{"from":"10-2024","to":"09-2026","fellBack":false},"priceToRentRatio":10.9,"ratioVerdict":"Favorable for buying — price-to-rent favors owning (modeled investor cash flow is negative, so this is owner-occupant math — it is not a claim of strong rental yield)","priceCagr":7.772923111956054,"rentCagr":3,"cashFlow":{"price":115923,"monthlyRent":889,"grossRent":889,"downPct":20,"ratePct":6.75,"units":1,"state":"SC","down":23184.600000000002,"loan":92738.4,"mortgagePI":601.4994971878181,"monthlyTax":80.08347249999998,"taxRatePct":0.829,"taxRateSource":"Census ACS county effective rate 0.83% ($811 tax ÷ $97,800 ACS median), applied to current value","monthlyInsurance":69.5538,"insuranceRatePct":0.72,"insuranceBasis":"Insurance: state-level estimate (SC avg 0.72%/yr)","insuranceHighRisk":true,"vacancyPct":5,"vacancyLoss":44.45,"egi":844.55,"mgmtPct":10,"monthlyMgmt":88.9,"maintenancePct":5,"monthlyMaint":44.45,"capexPct":5,"monthlyCapex":44.45,"hoaMonthly":0,"monthlyHoa":0,"operatingExpenses":327.4372725,"noi":517.1127274999999,"totalExpenses":928.936769687818,"cashFlow":-84.38676968781817,"annualCf":-1012.6412362538181,"cocReturn":-4.367732185389517,"capRate":5.352995289976966},"resilience":{"scenarios":[{"id":"rentDown","label":"Rent drops 10%","kind":"standard","detail":"Standard assumption","cashFlow":-151.061769687818,"delta":-67,"survives":false},{"id":"vacancy","label":"Vacancy stretches to 8%","kind":"standard","detail":"Standard assumption","cashFlow":-111.05676968781808,"delta":-27,"survives":false},{"id":"insurance","label":"Insurance costs rise 25%","kind":"standard","detail":"Standard assumption","cashFlow":-101.7752196878181,"delta":-17,"survives":false},{"id":"rateReset","label":"If financed at 8.25% instead","kind":"standard","detail":"Fixed-rate comparison — the deal if you'd borrowed at a higher rate today; your actual fixed payment never resets","cashFlow":-179.5999008311628,"delta":-95,"survives":false},{"id":"historyHome","label":"Worst market shock in available history (since 1991-01-01) (home values −7.6% over 12 months)","kind":"history","detail":"History-derived proxy: worst decline found in any window of up to 12 months in the state FHFA home-value series, 2010-01-01 → 2011-01-01, applied to rent","cashFlow":-135.11316589435125,"delta":-51,"survives":false}],"survived":0,"total":5,"score":0,"worstCashFlow":-179.5999008311628,"baselineCashFlow":-84.38676968781817,"framing":"underwater","confidenceLabel":"crosscheck","omitted":[],"note":"Each scenario re-runs the same verified cash-flow engine with one shock applied, then re-checks the cash-flow identity before display. Standard shocks are fixed assumptions; the history-derived scenario is this market's own worst observed 12-month decline. Estimates only — not a guarantee of performance."},"rentVsBuy":{"years":7,"priceCagr":7.772923111956054,"rentCagr":3,"totalRentPaid":81743.14654508379,"totalCashOutlay":96822.4203323096,"insuranceBasis":"Insurance: state-level estimate (SC avg 0.72%/yr)","homeValueAfter":195765.99143080114,"equityBuilt":111571.14128189205,"netCostOfBuying":8435.879050417556,"buyingCheaper":true,"savings":73307.26749466623},"priceToIncome":{"ratio":2.6126436781609197,"price":115923,"medianIncome":44370,"label":"Affordable (≤3x income — historical rule of thumb)"},"countyTaxRatePct":0.829,"countyTaxSource":"Census ACS county effective rate 0.83% ($811 tax ÷ $97,800 ACS median), applied to current value","dataCheck":{"status":"crosscheck","checks":[{"metric":"home value (vintage update)","primary":115923,"secondary":97800,"primarySource":"current estimate (ACS county median × FHFA state HPI growth)","secondarySource":"raw ACS 2023 county median (as measured ~2021)","ratio":1.19,"grade":"crosscheck","consistent":false,"hidePoint":false},{"metric":"HUD fair market rent","primary":889,"secondary":815,"primarySource":"HUD FMR (county)","secondarySource":"Census ACS (county gross rent)","ratio":1.09,"grade":"verified","consistent":true,"hidePoint":false}],"confidence":{"homeValue":{"label":"crosscheck","ratio":1.19,"sources":["current estimate (ACS county median × FHFA state HPI growth)","raw ACS 2023 county median (as measured ~2021)"],"hidePoint":false,"range":{"low":97800,"high":115923}},"rent":{"label":"verified","ratio":1.09,"sources":["HUD FMR (county)","Census ACS (county gross rent)"],"hidePoint":false,"range":{"low":815,"high":889}},"income":{"label":"estimate","sources":["Census ACS"]},"crime":{"label":"estimate","sources":["FBI CDE"]}},"note":"Every headline metric is checked against a second figure, and each check names its own basis. The rent and property-price checks pair genuinely independent datasets (HUD FMR vs Census ACS gross rent; your price vs the county estimate). The home-value check compares our current estimate (ACS county median updated by the FHFA state index) against the raw ACS 2023 median — its spread reflects price movement since the ACS measurement period (~2021), not disagreement between unrelated sources. 'Verified' means the two figures agree within 15%; 'Cross-checked' means they diverge more than 15%; 'Divergent' flags a >2x difference. A spread beyond 35% is too wide to defend a single point — the headline shows the source range instead, flagged 'sources disagree'."},"integrity":{"status":"pass","checks":[{"name":"home value freshness","status":"pass","detail":"latest 2026-04-01 (227d old — current for quarterly cadence)"},{"name":"home value card↔chart","status":"pass","detail":"card matches chart"},{"name":"home value growth window","status":"pass","detail":"growth matches the 5.0yr available window"},{"name":"rent freshness","status":"pass","detail":"latest 2026-11-01 (13d old — current for monthly cadence)"},{"name":"rent card↔chart","status":"pass","detail":"card matches chart"},{"name":"cash flow identity","status":"pass","detail":"NOI − P&I = cash flow"},{"name":"cash-on-cash","status":"pass","detail":"annual CF ÷ down matches"},{"name":"cap rate","status":"pass","detail":"NOI×12 ÷ price matches"},{"name":"price-to-rent","status":"pass","detail":"price ÷ (rent×12) matches"},{"name":"income plausibility","status":"pass","detail":"within expected range"},{"name":"price-to-income","status":"pass","detail":"price ÷ income matches"},{"name":"buy-vs-rent: home value at term","status":"pass","detail":"compounds at 7.8%/yr"},{"name":"buy-vs-rent: total rent paid","status":"pass","detail":"geometric series matches"},{"name":"buy-vs-rent: equity built","status":"pass","detail":"home value − loan balance matches"},{"name":"buy-vs-rent: net cost","status":"pass","detail":"outlay − equity gain matches"},{"name":"buy-vs-rent: savings & verdict","status":"pass","detail":"savings = rent − net cost, verdict matches"}],"summary":"16/16 verified","freshness":{"homeValue":{"date":"2026-04-01","ageDays":227,"cadence":"quarterly","current":true},"rent":{"date":"2026-11-01","ageDays":13,"cadence":"monthly","current":true}}},"confidence":{"homeValue":{"label":"crosscheck","ratio":1.19,"sources":["current estimate (ACS county median × FHFA state HPI growth)","raw ACS 2023 county median (as measured ~2021)"],"hidePoint":false,"range":{"low":97800,"high":115923}},"rent":{"label":"verified","ratio":1.09,"sources":["HUD FMR (county)","Census ACS (county gross rent)"],"hidePoint":false,"range":{"low":815,"high":889}},"income":{"label":"estimate","sources":["Census ACS"]},"crime":{"label":"estimate","sources":["FBI CDE"]}},"verdict":"Bamberg County, SC leans favorable for buying: a price-to-rent ratio of 10.9 favors owning at the median, and modeled investor cash flow is negative, so this is owner-occupant math — not a claim of strong rental yield.","faqs":[{"q":"Is Bamberg County, SC a good rental market?","a":"For owning at the median, yes — Bamberg County's price-to-rent ratio of 10.9 is in the favorable range, but modeled investor cash flow is negative, so it is not a claim of strong rental yield."},{"q":"What is the median home value in Bamberg County?","a":"The typical home value in Bamberg County is about $115,923 (county-level, Census ACS & FHFA state HPI), up 2.4% year-over-year, and up 45.4% over five years."},{"q":"What is the median rent in Bamberg County?","a":"The typical rent in Bamberg County is about $889/mo (county-level, HUD 2-bedroom benchmark bridged from Census ACS gross rent), a current modeled estimate."},{"q":"Is it cheaper to rent or buy in Bamberg County?","a":"Over a 7-year horizon, buying is cheaper in Bamberg County — roughly $73,307 ahead of renting, with about $111,571 in equity built."},{"q":"Is Bamberg County affordable for homebuyers?","a":"Bamberg County's median home value is 2.6x the local median household income — Affordable (≤3x income — historical rule of thumb)."},{"q":"What is the property tax rate in Bamberg County?","a":"Bamberg County's effective property tax rate is about 0.83% of home value (Census ACS county effective rate 0.83% ($811 tax ÷ $97,800 ACS median), applied to current value), which on a $115,923 median home is roughly $80/mo."}],"takeaways":["The median home value in Bamberg County, SC was $115,923 as of April 2026, up 2.4% year over year (FHFA HPI applied to the Census ACS county median).","The typical market rent in Bamberg County, SC was $889/mo as of November 2026, a current modeled estimate (HUD Fair Market Rent, FY2027, bridged from Census ACS gross rent).","Bamberg County, SC has a price-to-rent ratio of 10.9 — a reading that favors owning (owner-occupant math — not automatically strong investor cash flow). (Computed by Areal from the figures above.)"],"citationSources":[{"name":"U.S. Census Bureau — ACS ACS 2024 5-year estimates","url":"https://www.census.gov/programs-surveys/acs/"},{"name":"FHFA House Price Index","url":"https://www.fhfa.gov/data/hpi"},{"name":"HUD Fair Market Rent","url":"https://www.huduser.gov/portal/datasets/fmr.html"},{"name":"FBI Crime Data Explorer","url":"https://cde.ucr.cjis.gov/"}],"jsonApi":{"function":"getCountyReport","query":"slug=bamberg-sc","url":"https://areal.studio/functions/getCountyReport?slug=bamberg-sc"},"assumptions":{"downPct":20,"ratePct":6.75,"years":7},"dataVintage":{"pulledAt":"2026-11-14T10:04:51.924Z","homeValueBasis":"FHFA state HPI (quarterly) × ACS county anchor","rentBasis":"HUD county FMR — flat current estimate (modeled, no public trend)","zhviThrough":null,"zoriThrough":null,"fhfaHpiThrough":"2026-04-01","hpiLevel":"state","hpiMetro":null,"acsVintage":"ACS 2024 5-year estimates","acsVintageMisses":[],"hudFy":"2027","safmrFy":null},"zipAnchors":{"homeValueTier":"county-fhfa-acs","rentTier":"county-acs-hud","zhvi":null,"zori":null,"safmr":null,"countyHomeEstimate":115923,"countyFmr":889,"countyRatio":null,"hpiLevel":"state","hpiMetro":null},"links":{"stateDir":"SC","stateName":"South Carolina","cityPages":[],"zips":[]},"sources":["Census ACS 5-year","FHFA HPI","HUD Fair Market Rent","FBI CDE (state-level context)"]}