Rockford, IL — Momentum Score, Home Values & Best-For

All states·Illinois·Rockford

Winnebago County · Rockford · population 147,486

AffordabilityInvestors
Rockford, IL
Image: Wikipedia · Rockford, Illinois
OverviewCost of livingMoving guide
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81
Hot
Momentum score · 0–100

Where Rockford stands

At or near all-time high. home values up 10.0% in the last year. averaging 10.4% annual growth over 5 years. rents up 6.8% in the last year.

Median home $180,220
1-year +10.0%
5-yr CAGR +10.4%
vs 5-yr peak +0.0%
Population -0.2%/yr

Home value trajectory · last 10 years

Zillow ZHVI · monthly
peak 2026-04$180k$65k$106k$147k$187k201620182020202220242026

Lifestyle scores

🚶
Walkability
40/100
Car-dependent
Estimated from population density. Higher = denser, more amenities within walking distance.
🚉
Public transit
30/100
Minimal transit
Curated list of major US transit systems + population-based estimate. Higher = real subway/rail/bus options.
💻
Remote work fit
78/100
Strong remote-work fit
Composite of city size, housing cost, state tax structure, and region's remote-work track record.

Scores are heuristic estimates from population density, state, and known transit/walkable cities. Not based on a paid Walk Score / Transit Score API — see methodology for the formula.

Rent trajectory · last 5 years

Zillow ZORI · monthly
$1,199/mo$773$1,022$1,271202220242026

Home value vs rent · indexed to 100

Both rebased at first month of ZORI data (~2015)
Home valueRent164146100120140160202220242026

Rent vs buy

Price-to-rent ratio: 12.5
Buy

At a 12.5 price-to-rent ratio, buying generally beats renting in Rockford on a long-enough horizon. The headline math is that one year of mortgage payments approximates 12.5 years of rent — well below the 15+ threshold where ownership starts to dominate.

How the momentum score breaks down

methodology →
Home YoY
92 · w22%
Home 5-yr CAGR
88 · w22%
Distance from peak
90 · w18%
Population growth
42 · w16%
Rent YoY
85 · w12%
Home 10-yr CAGR
88 · w10%
Long thesis

Rockford has averaged 10.4% annual appreciation over five years and the trend is still live (+10.0% in the last 12 months). When a momentum trade keeps working, the simplest explanation is usually correct: more people want in.

Short thesis

Rockford's bear case is the boring one: the cycle is real and any market that's run hard can stall. Watch for slowing population growth, rising days-on-market, or builder discounts as the early warning signals.

About Rockford

Rockford is a city in Winnebago County, Illinois, with an estimated population of 147,486. The median home value in Rockford is $180,220 as of 2026-04, up 10.0% over the last 12 months. Over the last five years, home values have averaged +10.4% annual growth, with prices at or near the 5-year peak. Rents in Rockford average $1,199 per month, up 6.8% year-over-year. The composite momentum score is 81 of 100 (Hot). Buyers should expect competition and limited negotiation room in this market.

▲ Bull case

●Multi-year compounder: home values up an average 10.4% per year over the last 5 years — sustained, not a one-year pop.
●Trend still working: prices up 10.0% in the last 12 months — buyers are still chasing inventory.
●Affordable AND rising: median home $180,220 with positive recent direction — rare combination most of the country can’t offer.
●Held the highs: currently +0.0% from the 5-year peak — this market refused to give back gains.
●Hot rental market: rents up 6.8% YoY — landlords have pricing power, supports new investment math.

▼ Bear case

○Local nuance: city-level data smooths over neighborhood differences. School zones, HOA rules, and street-level character matter — visit before deciding.

About Rockford (Wikipedia)

Rockford is a city in Winnebago and Ogle counties in the U.S. state of Illinois. It is located in far northern Illinois on the banks of the Rock River. It is the fifth-most populous city in Illinois, with a population of 148,655 at the 2020 census. The Rockford metropolitan area has an estimated 337,000 residents. Rockford is the county seat of Winnebago County and the most populous city in Illinois outside the Chicago metropolitan area.

Source: Wikipedia · this summary is contributed and licensed under CC-BY-SA.

City facts

Area65.92 sq mi
Elevation728 ft
Incorporated1839 (as a town)January 3, 1852 (as a ci
Motto"The Government Closest to the People"
Density2290.24/sq mi

Extracted from the Wikipedia infobox. Values may be slightly out of date relative to the latest sources.

Playbook

Buyer

Expect competition, escalation clauses, and pressure to waive inspections. Make your strongest offer up front — Hot markets reward decisiveness, not negotiation. If you can't write a clean offer, you may not be the best fit for this market right now.

Seller

Price slightly above recent comps and let multiple offers work. Days-on-market should be short. Don't accept the first offer in the first 48 hours unless it's significantly above ask.

Investor

Cap rates are still workable thanks to a reasonable price-to-rent ratio. Buy-and-hold math works if the trend continues; underwrite a moderate slowdown to be safe.

Local safety & alerts

No active National Weather Service alerts for Winnebago County right now.

NWS active alerts (IL)Illinois Emergency ManagementHow to prepare (NWS)

Public-safety links are official .gov sources, not curated by us. Winnebago County routes NWS alerts; check the state EM portal for non-weather emergencies.

Neighborhoods of Rockford

44 tracked · ranked by median home value
1Red Oaks$382,444+6.5%
2Tower Hill Estates$320,893+8.6%
3Quail Run$308,415+7.8%
4Reid Farm$305,745+8.4%
5Parkland$287,224+8.0%
6Westvale$285,263+4.5%
7Kelly Meadow$277,152+8.2%
8Country Club Estates$258,993+9.8%
9Spring Lake$254,078+8.4%
10Crestdale Drive$229,062+11.1%
11Marimark$224,726+10.1%
12Jefferson Ridge$222,434+9.4%
13Arnold$216,123+7.9%
14Park-ER-Woods$210,174+10.9%
15Palmwood$202,547+10.8%
16Edgebrook$201,631+10.2%
17Bluffside Heights$196,789+8.9%
18Churchill Grove$195,355+6.3%
19Alpine Ridge$189,704+9.7%
20Gregory Heights$188,762+9.5%
21North Highland$181,717+9.2%
22Edgewater$179,837+5.6%
23Rolling Green South$173,793+8.4%
24Pine Manor$171,248+9.7%

See the full neighborhood ranking →

Cities like Rockford

Machesney Park, IL80 · HotLoves Park, IL78 · HotPekin, IL74 · RisingRoscoe, IL78 · Hot

Run the numbers for Rockford

ToolCan I afford Rockford?Income → city shortlistToolROI on a Rockford rentalCap rate, cash-on-cash, DSCRToolCompare Rockford to anywhereSide-by-side up to 3 citiesToolRockford cost-of-livingEquivalent income elsewhere

Sources: Zillow ZHVI (home values), Zillow ZORI (rents), US Census ACS + place population. Updated when source agencies publish revisions.

Climate & natural-disaster risk

Winter (Jan)
33° / 18°
avg high / low
Summer (Jul)
85° / 64°
avg high / low
Sunny days/yr
189
~52% of year
Annual precip
38″ rain
22″ snow
Disaster risk (1=very low, 5=very high)
Hurricane
Very low
Tornado
High
Wildfire
Very low
Earthquake
Low
Flood
Moderate

State-level averages from NOAA Climate Normals (1991-2020) and FEMA National Risk Index. City-level conditions can vary significantly within a state.

Current weather

Loading current conditions…

7-day forecast on weather.gov →

Find rentals & listings

Open current Rockford listings on the major real-estate sites.

Links open the live search on the destination site — results are always current.

Local news & community

Updated 2026-05-21 from Google News + Reddit RSS. Headlines link to original sources.

Local sports teams

Major professional teams the Rockford area cheers for. Detailed stats, schedules, and player pages on intherafters.com.