Analyzing Rental Returns: Hanover vs York vs Gettysburg

Thinking about buying a rental in South‑Central Pennsylvania and wondering where your dollars will work hardest? Hanover, York, and Gettysburg each offer a different mix of demand drivers, vacancy patterns, and operating costs. You want clear assumptions you can trust before you write an offer. In this guide, you’ll get a practical, data‑driven way to compare returns across these three markets, plus the line items and ranges to plug into your worksheet. Let’s dive in.

What drives returns in each market

Hanover overview

Hanover is a small borough with a mix of single‑family and small multifamily homes that serve nearby towns and rural areas. Local industrial and retail employers support steady rental demand. Tenants are primarily local workers and families, with some commuters. New large multifamily supply in the borough is limited, so stock is older and often more maintenance‑intensive.

York overview

York is the regional economic hub with deeper rental demand and more varied housing options. You will find single‑family neighborhoods, urban multifamily, and newer suburban rentals in the county. Major healthcare, manufacturing, logistics, and highway access support tenant demand from students, young professionals, families, and the local workforce. Competition from newer units is more common than in smaller boroughs.

Gettysburg overview

Gettysburg is a historic college town with layered demand from a liberal arts college and year‑round tourism. Student demand and seasonal tourism can push gross income higher, but vacancy and turnover patterns differ from a typical suburban rental. Short‑term rentals can look attractive on paper, but they require separate underwriting because of seasonality, regulations, and higher management intensity.

Start with local rent benchmarks

A strong underwriting model begins with realistic rent inputs for your unit type.

• Pull county baselines from the HUD Fair Market Rents to set a floor for standard unit sizes. You can reference the latest figures on the HUD User site under Fair Market Rents.
• Adjust for each borough or city using American Community Survey median rent data. The ACS 5‑year estimates provide place‑level context that helps you refine assumptions.
• Check recent trend data from rental research sites to understand momentum in asking rents across York County and Adams County.
• Validate with neighborhood‑level checks and real‑time listings. Review 10–15 active landlord listings and use a quick check tool for comparable 1 to 3 bedroom units.
• Confirm on‑the‑ground ranges with 1–2 local property managers. Ask about vacancy, concessions, and tenant profile by unit type.

Helpful sources:

• Use the American Community Survey for place‑level rent and housing stock insights at census.gov/programs-surveys/acs.
• Reference county baselines on the HUD User Fair Market Rents page at huduser.gov/portal/datasets/fmr.html.
• Explore recent rent trend summaries at rentcafe.com and apartmentlist.com/research.
• Spot check comparable rents by address at rentometer.com.

Vacancy and rent collection assumptions

Vacancy and credit loss assumptions change by market depth and seasonality. As a starting point for long‑term rentals, test within these ranges:

• York: 5 to 8 percent
• Hanover: 5 to 9 percent
• Gettysburg: 6 to 12 percent

If you are modeling short‑term rentals in Gettysburg, use a separate revenue model with explicit seasonality and higher management costs. For concessions in softer pockets, include 0 to 2 percent of potential rent.

Operating expense ranges to use

Underwrite expenses line by line and avoid a single catch‑all figure. Here are common items and typical starting points for small Pennsylvania rentals:

• Property taxes: Calculate from assessed value and local millage. Taxes can swing cash flow more than any other line item, so pull recent tax bills on comparable sales and test sensitivity.
• Insurance: 3 to 6 percent of Effective Gross Income for small SFR or multifamily. Older buildings and STR policies trend higher.
• Owner‑paid utilities: 5 to 10 percent of EGI if you cover heat, water, sewer, or trash. Adjust by unit mix and local rates.
• Maintenance and repairs: 5 to 12 percent of EGI, or roughly 500 to 1,500 dollars per unit per year for SFRs. Older stock requires more.
• Property management: 8 to 12 percent of collected rent for full service. If self‑managing, budget 3 to 6 percent equivalent for your time and systems.
• Administrative: 1 to 3 percent of EGI for advertising, legal, and leasing costs.
• Capital expenditures and reserves: 250 to 1,000 dollars per unit per year, with older buildings toward the top end.

As a rule of thumb, total operating expenses often land between 30 and 55 percent of EGI in small PA markets. Expect the low end when tenants pay most utilities and the building is newer. Expect the high end for older SFRs and small multis with owner‑paid utilities.

Taxes, insurance, and local rules to confirm

• Property taxes: Pennsylvania municipalities apply millage to assessed value. Estimate tax as Assessed Value × Millage ÷ 1,000, or compute an effective rate using recent comparable tax bills. Always verify with the county assessor or treasurer.
• Insurance: Get local landlord or DP3 quotes based on age, systems, and location. If you plan STR or student rentals, confirm coverage and add loss of rents and liability as needed.
• Registration and licensing: Many boroughs require rental registration and inspections. Tourist towns often regulate STRs. Check borough and county websites for registration, occupancy limits, business licensing, and fines before you commit.

Build your underwriting worksheet

Create a simple worksheet that separates inputs from calculations. Include:

• Deal inputs: price, closing costs, loan terms, units, and bed/bath mix.
• Revenue: market rent by unit, other income like parking or pet fees, and conservative rent growth of 2 to 4 percent if supported by local history.
• Vacancy and concessions: use the ranges above for each market.
• Expenses: taxes, insurance, utilities, maintenance, management, admin, HOA, reserves, and CapEx.
• Financing: interest rate and amortization schedule.

Key outputs to track:

• Potential Gross Income: rent × 12 before vacancy or concessions.
• Effective Gross Income: PGI minus vacancy and concessions.
• Net Operating Income: EGI minus operating expenses.
• Cash Flow Before Taxes: NOI minus debt service.
• Cap rate: NOI divided by purchase price. Use this to compare yield across the three markets.
• Gross Rent Multiplier: price divided by annual gross rent. Lower is better for similar property types.
• Cash‑on‑cash return: annual pre‑tax cash flow divided by total cash invested. Many investors target 6 to 8 percent, adjusting for risk.
• Debt Service Coverage Ratio: NOI divided by annual debt service. Lenders commonly look for 1.20 to 1.25 or higher.

Apples‑to‑apples comparison: Hanover vs York vs Gettysburg

To make a clean comparison, standardize what you are measuring.

• Choose a unit type: for example, a 2 bedroom SFR or a 4 unit building. Compare the same type across each market.
• Keep assumptions consistent: use the same management and expense structure unless a local factor clearly changes it. Gettysburg student or STR seasonality is one case where assumptions will differ.
• Model taxes separately: do not bury taxes inside a single expense ratio. Taxes can make or break a deal.
• Run three scenarios for each market:
  • Conservative: rents 5 to 10 percent lower, vacancy up 2 to 5 points, expenses 10 percent higher.
  • Base: market rents, market vacancy, typical expenses.
  • Optimistic: rents 5 to 10 percent higher, vacancy 2 to 3 points lower, expenses flat.
• Compare per‑unit and per‑dollar metrics: NOI per unit and NOI per 100,000 dollars of price make returns more comparable when prices differ.

Quick view: how the markets differ

• York: deeper demand and more unit variety. Vacancy often 5 to 8 percent with competitive pressure from newer rentals. Good fit if you value consistency and scale.
• Hanover: smaller market that can deliver slightly higher yield on lower purchase prices. Expect smaller absolute cash flow and potentially higher per‑unit maintenance due to older stock.
• Gettysburg: strong student and tourism layers. Long‑term rentals can work, but student turnover and seasonality matter. STRs can lift gross income, but plan for higher vacancy, management, and regulatory compliance.

Red flags and due diligence checklist

• Do not rely only on asking rents. Validate with executed leases or management data.
• Underwrite taxes with care. Millage and assessment shifts can move your cash flow more than you expect.
• Model Gettysburg seasonality. Summer vacancy and student turnover change effective income and turnover costs.
• Do not treat STR and long‑term models as the same. STRs have higher operating costs, variable occupancy, and regulatory risk.
• Budget realistic maintenance and CapEx for older buildings.

What this means for your strategy

If you want consistency and market depth, York is often the steadiest place to start. If you are chasing yield on a tighter budget, Hanover can pencil, especially if you are ready for older‑stock maintenance and careful tax checks. If you have the appetite for student dynamics or STR management, Gettysburg can generate higher effective gross income, but you should model vacancy and operating costs with extra discipline. In every case, build a side‑by‑side worksheet and run conservative, base, and optimistic scenarios before you offer.

Ready to apply this framework to a property you are eyeing in York or Adams County? Schedule a quick planning call to talk through rent comps, taxes, and market‑right assumptions. Reach out to Unknown Company to get started.

FAQs

How do I find accurate rents for a 2 bedroom in Hanover or York?

• Start with HUD Fair Market Rents for county baselines, refine with American Community Survey place‑level data, check recent trend summaries on rent research sites, validate with 10 to 15 active listings and a neighborhood rent checker, then confirm with a local property manager.

What vacancy rate should I model for a long‑term rental in Gettysburg?

• For long‑term rentals, test 6 to 12 percent vacancy due to student turnover and seasonality, and run a sensitivity with a higher turnover cost line item.

How do property taxes differ between York County and Adams County for rentals?

• Use county assessor data to apply millage to assessed value for each property, then verify with recent tax bills from comparable sales. Even small millage differences can materially change cash flow, so test multiple tax scenarios.

Should I underwrite Gettysburg as a long‑term rental or as a short‑term rental?

• Model both. Long‑term rentals generally provide steadier income, while STRs can increase gross revenue but require higher vacancy assumptions, more management, distinct insurance, and compliance with STR rules.

What cash‑on‑cash return is reasonable for South‑Central PA rentals?

• Many investors target 6 to 8 percent cash‑on‑cash for stabilized long‑term rentals, then adjust based on risk, financing, and property condition. Always run conservative, base, and optimistic scenarios before you decide.