5 Great Connecticut Towns and Cities for Residential Real Estate Investors

Clients and customers are constantly looking for advice about what towns and cities they should invest in to succeed. As property managers though, we don’t think about strictly profits when we recommend a town or city to invest in…we think about your peace of mind! How easy will it be to fill vacancies? Is the location desirable for renters now? And will it continue to be in the future? All of these questions and more should be asked before you purchase any rental property, but here is a list of five Connecticut towns and cities that offer great investment opportunities for residential real estate investors!

West Hartford

West Hartford is one of the most vibrant towns in Connecticut and an excellent location to own residential rental property. Bordering CT’s capital city of Hartford means that West Hartford is close to some of the state's largest employers, such as Hartford Financial Services. This immediately makes it easier to find relocating renters with the right qualifications to match! In addition to being near the capital, West Hartford has many fantastic shops and restaurants to attract the locals. Robert C. White & Company manages multiple rental properties in West Hartford, and filling them quickly with good tenants has never been easier than it is right now. Location, local amenities, and also great rental rates to generate income…what more could an investor ask for? Consider West Hartford.

Milford 

Milford is another lovely Connecticut city with over 14 miles of coastline to it’s name, the most in the state! The city has also grown rapidly to over 50,000 people over the last few year. With access to Route 95 and trains taking you right directly into NYC or New Haven, Milford is quite a desirable location. Rents in MIlford are some of the highest in New Haven County too, with the average two bedroom apartment renting for more than $1,500/month in 2021. With many predicting rents will continue their steep rise this year, it makes Milford a great city to search for investment opportunities.

New Haven

According to RentCafe, over 45% of the city of New Haven’s population are renters, which makes this a great place to consider residential investment properties! New Haven is also home to many colleges and universities including Yale, The University of New Haven, and Quinnipiac. Yale New Haven Hospital is also here and is a major employer attracting tons to medical professionals to the area each year.  All that said, there are plenty of qualified tenants in this city! Properties near to major employers downtown or the universities can also bring in a premium because of the limited availability of units in the area. For a quaint 3 bedroom rental unit that Robert C. White & Company is currently managing near Quinnipiac, we’re able to rent the rooms separately at nearly a $500/monthly premium for our owner!

Fairfield

Fairfield is a smart place to invest in residential rental property because of it it’s lively downtown, great public amenities, and local demographics. For one, Fairfield is the head of Fairfield County, the wealthiest in the state of Connecticut. With higher annual household incomes than the rest of the state, it means renters in Fairfield and the rest of the county can typically afford more. In 2014, Money Magazine also listed Fairfield as one of the top 50 towns and cities to live in the entire country. Lots of people want to live here, and that means not only good rental returns on the investment property you own today, but likely strong future appreciation when it’s time to sell. Fairfield also has a prime location along the coastline with access to Route 95 and trains to NYC, making it a great place for commuting workers to live and rent.

Stamford
Great rental rates and a high percentage of renters vs owner occupied units… both can be found in Stamford, now Connecticut’s second largest city! Here, a typical two bedroom rents for an average of $2,200 dollars per month (though that’s not a problem for most of the high earning folks in the area). Again, these coastal towns and cities have become more desirable post pandemic, especially for folks that work in New York, but are tired of being confined by it. While finding residential investment property can be difficult here the rental rates are great, location is desirable, and you’ll likely never spend much time in vacancy…cha ching!

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