Side-by-side comparison of Fort Wayne, IN and Bloomington, IN — cap rates, rent, prices, and investment metrics.
Cash flow: Bloomington has the edge with an estimated cap rate of 4.18% compared to Fort Wayne's 3.55%. Neither city passes the 1% rule outright, so deal sourcing and value-add strategies become more important. Median home prices are $250,000 in Fort Wayne vs $290,000 in Bloomington, while rents come in at $1,150/mo and $1,480/mo respectively. For context, the national average cap rate is 3.81% and average price is $333K.
Growth & appreciation: Bloomington is growing faster at 0.8% annually vs Fort Wayne's 0.7%. Bloomington leads on home value appreciation at 2.6% per year.
Costs & risk: Property taxes are 0.85% in Fort Wayne vs 0.83% in Bloomington. Vacancy rates of 5.8% and 5.2% are both healthy, suggesting strong tenant demand in both markets.
Entry point: Fort Wayne offers a lower entry at $250K vs Bloomington's $290K — a difference of $40K. With a 20% down payment, that's $50K vs $58K. Bloomington's higher price may be justified by stronger growth.
Bottom line: Bloomington edges out Fort Wayne on most key metrics. While cap rates are moderate at 4.18%, Bloomington's overall profile is stronger. Use our free calculators to model specific deals in Fort Wayne or Bloomington.