Finding Data for Market Trends in smaller cities

[Paul C.]

Hi All, I currently live in Atlanta and invest in the area, but am moving to Carrollton, Ga in the next couple of weeks. I am trying to determine whether it makes the most sense to invest in the Carrollton market and start stacking units there or if I should stay in Atlanta. I would love to do this by finding information on jobs, income, days on market, etc over the past couple of years to try to determine the future outlook. Unfortunately, I am only able to find this for major markets and cannot find any statistics regarding smaller cities. The zip code data that is available for free is very limited and not sure which one would even give me what I wanted. The only data I have right now is around sales that is coming from InfoSparks on FMLS. Any help is greatly appreciated!

[Cody Smith]

Hey Paul! My name is Cody Smith, I'm an agent and investor. I am from the Carrollton area, but have been in Columbus, GA for the last 10 years with the Army and this is where I have done most of my real estate sales and investing. I think there are a lot of variables for each of these options to determine why and where you would invest, here are my thoughts based on a "broad view" of each market.

If you continued to invest in Atlanta, obviously there will continue to be growth and appreciation, depending on the location. I would assume you have a higher cost of entry in your Atlanta properties, and would have to continue to pay more to purchase, while benefitting from the likely higher appreciation and population growth you'll see in a larger metropolitan market like Atlanta. (again, mostly guessing here)

For a market like Carrollton, I'm sure you are aware that properties can be much less costly to get into than Atlanta, but Carrollton is still a decent-sized market. I would assume you will see much less competition than in Atlanta, but could still see some pretty good returns if you find the right deal. My guess is your capital could stretch much further with less competition, but you likely wouldn't see the same levels of appreciation or rent increases as you would in Atlanta. Carrollton has grown a lot over the years, however, and I would say it will continue to grow and improve as more people are interested in more affordable markets close to the Atlanta area.

I would say Columbus, GA is pretty similar to the Carrollton market, but a good bit larger in population. According to the 2022 census, Carrollton, GA has a population of just over 30,000, an increase of 3,000 from the 2020 estimation of 27,000. The Columbus, GA market currently boasts a population of just over 200,000, an increase of 3,000 from the 2020 census estimating a population of 197,500. So, the increase is more dramatic in the Carrollton market when compared to similar markets outside Atlanta, but that comes with less opportunity as well. The Columbus, GA market has every type of property you can think of, with a wide range of options to invest in. I have seen some pretty good returns (depending on the property of course) with other investors I work with buying in Columbus. It's also very convenient to Atlanta and Carrollton, with a 1.5 hour drive to Atlanta and a 1.5 hour drive to Carrollton as well. 

Hope this helps!