Puyallup, WA — Momentum Score, Home Values & Best-For

All states·Washington·Puyallup

Pierce County · Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue · population 42,552

Puyallup, WA
Image: Wikipedia · Puyallup, Washington
OverviewCost of livingMoving guide
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59
Stable
Momentum score · 0–100

Where Puyallup stands

At or near all-time high.

Median home $575,466
1-year -0.7%
5-yr CAGR +3.4%
vs 5-yr peak -1.6%
Population -0.2%/yr

Home value trajectory · last 10 years

Zillow ZHVI · monthly
peak 2025-02$575k$260k$376k$492k$608k201620182020202220242026

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
89/100
Excellent for remote work
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
$2,216/mo$1,653$2,001$2,349202220242026

Home value vs rent · indexed to 100

Both rebased at first month of ZORI data (~2015)
Home valueRent118126100120202220242026

Rent vs buy

Price-to-rent ratio: 21.6
Lean rent

At a 21.6 price-to-rent ratio, the math is starting to lean toward renting in Puyallup. 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
47 · w22%
Home 5-yr CAGR
55 · w22%
Distance from peak
80 · w18%
Population growth
41 · w16%
Rent YoY
61 · w12%
Home 10-yr CAGR
78 · w10%
Long thesis

Puyallup has held up across the cycle: home values at $575,466 with +3.4% 5-year CAGR. The bull case is structural — population, location, employer base — and holds even if next year's print is soft.

Short thesis

Puyallup'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 Puyallup

Puyallup is a city in Pierce County, Washington, with an estimated population of 42,552. It anchors the Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue metro area. The median home value in Puyallup is $575,466 as of 2026-04, down 0.7% over the last 12 months. Over the last five years, home values have averaged +3.4% annual growth, with prices at or near the 5-year peak. Rents in Puyallup average $2,216 per month, roughly flat year-over-year (+2.3%). 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 -1.6% from the 5-year peak — this market refused to give back gains.
○The data is the data: Puyallup 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 Puyallup (Wikipedia)

Puyallup is a city in Pierce County, Washington, United States. It is on the Puyallup River about 10 miles (16 km) southeast of Tacoma and 35 miles (56 km) south of Seattle. The city had a population of 42,973 at the 2020 census.

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 Pierce County right now.

NWS active alerts (WA)Washington Emergency ManagementHow to prepare (NWS)

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

Neighborhoods of Puyallup

2 tracked · ranked by median home value
1Southhill$461,721-1.5%
2Downtown$426,895+0.2%

Cities like Puyallup

Lakewood, WA60 · StableBonney Lake, WA60 · StableTukwila, WA58 · StableAuburn, WA56 · Stable

Run the numbers for Puyallup

ToolCan I afford Puyallup?Income → city shortlistToolROI on a Puyallup rentalCap rate, cash-on-cash, DSCRToolCompare Puyallup to anywhereSide-by-side up to 3 citiesToolPuyallup 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)
45° / 35°
avg high / low
Summer (Jul)
77° / 56°
avg high / low
Sunny days/yr
152
~42% of year
Annual precip
38″ rain
10″ snow
Disaster risk (1=very low, 5=very high)
Hurricane
Very low
Tornado
Very low
Wildfire
High
Earthquake
Very high
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 Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue 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 Puyallup 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
75%
Very humid climate
Median household income
$90,400
Washington state median
Top industries (state-level)
Tech (Amazon/MS)Aerospace (Boeing)Agriculture

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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