Laurel, MD — Momentum Score, Home Values & Best-For

All states·Maryland·Laurel

Prince George's County · Washington-Arlington-Alexandria · population 30,238

Laurel, MD
Image: Wikipedia · Laurel, Maryland
OverviewCost of livingMoving guide
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59
Stable
Momentum score · 0–100

Where Laurel stands

At or near all-time high.

Median home $478,030
1-year -0.1%
5-yr CAGR +3.2%
vs 5-yr peak -0.3%
Population +0.1%/yr

Home value trajectory · last 10 years

Zillow ZHVI · monthly
peak 2025-07$478k$288k$358k$428k$499k201620182020202220242026

Lifestyle scores

🚶
Walkability
32/100
Very car-dependent
Estimated from population density. Higher = denser, more amenities within walking distance.
🚉
Public transit
22/100
Transit limited
Curated list of major US transit systems + population-based estimate. Higher = real subway/rail/bus options.
💻
Remote work fit
76/100
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
$1,943/mo$1,507$1,783$2,059202220242026

Home value vs rent · indexed to 100

Both rebased at first month of ZORI data (~2015)
Home valueRent117121100120202220242026

Rent vs buy

Price-to-rent ratio: 20.5
Lean rent

At a 20.5 price-to-rent ratio, the math is starting to lean toward renting in Laurel. Owner-occupier ROI requires longer holds and the assumption that prices keep appreciating roughly at the rate of rent.

How the momentum score breaks down

methodology →
Home YoY
50 · w22%
Home 5-yr CAGR
54 · w22%
Distance from peak
88 · w18%
Population growth
48 · w16%
Rent YoY
59 · w12%
Home 10-yr CAGR
57 · w10%
Long thesis

Laurel has held up across the cycle: home values at $478,030 with +3.2% 5-year CAGR. The bull case is structural — population, location, employer base — and holds even if next year's print is soft.

Short thesis

Laurel'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 Laurel

Laurel is a city in Prince George's County, Maryland, with an estimated population of 30,238. It anchors the Washington-Arlington-Alexandria metro area. The median home value in Laurel is $478,030 as of 2026-04, down 0.1% over the last 12 months. Over the last five years, home values have averaged +3.2% annual growth, with prices at or near the 5-year peak. Rents in Laurel average $1,943 per month, roughly flat year-over-year (+2.1%). The composite momentum score is 59 of 100 (Stable). Conditions are neither hot nor cold, so the local fit matters more than market timing.

▲ Bull case

●Held the highs: currently -0.3% from the 5-year peak — this market refused to give back gains.
○The data is the data: Laurel has at least 5 years of Zillow tracking, full Census identification, and is included in the 2-criteria momentum score on this page.

▼ Bear case

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

About Laurel (Wikipedia)

Laurel is a city in Prince George's County, Maryland United States. It is located between Washington, D.C., and Baltimore on the banks of the Patuxent River. Its population was 30,060 at the 2020 census. Founded as a mill town in the early 19th century, Laurel expanded local industry and was later able to become an early commuter town for Washington and Baltimore workers following the arrival of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad in 1835. Largely residential today, the city maintains a historic district centered on its Main Street.

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

Playbook

Buyer

Lifestyle fit matters more than market timing in a Stable market. Take your time on the home and neighborhood; the macro trend isn't urgent. Negotiate normally.

Seller

Price competitively from day one or risk a 60+ day listing. Staging, photography, and presentation matter more in Stable markets than in Hot ones.

Investor

Stable cap rates, no big appreciation story to lean on. Underwrite this as a pure cash-flow play — the math has to work on rent alone.

Local safety & alerts

No active National Weather Service alerts for Prince George's County right now.

NWS active alerts (MD)Maryland Emergency ManagementHow to prepare (NWS)

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

Cities like Laurel

Bowie, MD60 · StableCollege Park, MD59 · StableHavre de Grace, MD62 · RisingEaston, MD60 · Stable

Run the numbers for Laurel

ToolCan I afford Laurel?Income → city shortlistToolROI on a Laurel rentalCap rate, cash-on-cash, DSCRToolCompare Laurel to anywhereSide-by-side up to 3 citiesToolLaurel 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)
42° / 25°
avg high / low
Summer (Jul)
87° / 68°
avg high / low
Sunny days/yr
203
~56% of year
Annual precip
44″ rain
18″ snow
Disaster risk (1=very low, 5=very high)
Hurricane
Moderate
Tornado
Low
Wildfire
Very low
Earthquake
Very 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.

Local sports teams

Major professional teams the Washington-Arlington-Alexandria area cheers for. Detailed stats, schedules, and player pages on intherafters.com.

Current weather

Loading current conditions…

7-day forecast on weather.gov →

Find rentals & listings

Open current Laurel 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 economy & environment

Humidity
68%
Moderate climate
Median household income
$98,500
Maryland state median
Top industries (state-level)
Government/DefenseBiotechHealthcare

Humidity is annual average relative humidity (NOAA). Income is Census ACS 5-year estimate. Industries are largest employment sectors statewide (BLS); the local mix in a given city may vary.

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