Memphis, TN · ZIP 38138
38138 Housing Market
What homes rent for, what they sell for, and whether the rent covers the price — the two halves of the question, on one page.
Market data as of September 12, 2026.
Buyer's market — prices down 5.3%, time to sell unchanged, year over year
Buying into a softening market: an exit priced off today's comparables may not hold, so leave room in the numbers and be sceptical of an optimistic value.
Median Rent
$2,515
$1.15/sq.ft.
Median Sale Price
$444,900
$171.11/sq.ft.
Gross Rental Yield
6.8%
annual rent ÷ sale price
The median advertised rent in 38138 in Memphis, TN is $2,515 a month, against a median asking price of $444,900. That is a gross rental yield of 6.8% — a year of rent measured against the price of a home, before any of the costs of owning one. There are 58 rentals advertised here, and the typical one has been on the market 49 days.
38138 Rental Market
What landlords in 38138 are asking, how that has moved, and how it breaks down by size and property type.
Median Rent
$2,515
all sizes
Median Rent / Sq.Ft.
$1.15
Avg. Days on Market
49 days
Rentals on Market
58
11 newly listed
Area Median Sale Price
$444,900
$171.11/sq.ft.
Gross Rental Yield
6.8%
annual rent ÷ sale price
Median rent in 38138, month by month
−1.2% over the last 12 months
1 month
−6.8% (-$184)
3 months
−3.1% (-$80)
12 months
−1.2% (-$30)
Median Rent by size and property type
| Size | Median Rent | Per Sq.Ft. | On Market |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 Bed | $1,298 | $1.72 | 9 |
| 2 Beds | $1,350 | $1.24 | 7 |
| 3 Beds | $2,495 | $1.17 | 8 |
| 4 Beds | $2,800 | $1.12 | 27 |
| 5 Beds | $3,750 | $1.05 | 7 |
| Type | Median Rent | Per Sq.Ft. | On Market |
|---|---|---|---|
| Apartment | $1,396 | $1.85 | 6 |
| Condo | $1,150 | $1.33 | 7 |
| Single Family | $2,800 | $1.12 | 43 |
| Townhouse | $1,350 | $1.23 | 2 |
Over the last twelve months the median rent in 38138 moved from $2,545 to $2,515, a fall of 1.2%. Most of that happened recently: the last three months alone account for 3.1%, so the move is accelerating rather than drifting. The most recent month alone moved 6.8%, which in a single month usually reflects which listings happened to be advertised rather than a real repricing.
Across 38138, a 1-bedroom rents for a median $1,298 and a 5-bedroom $3,750. The 4-bedroom is where the volume is, with 27 of the 58 listings on the market. Per square foot the order reverses, as it usually does: the smaller unit runs $1.72 against $1.05 for the larger one, so the bigger home is the better value by area even though it costs more in total.
By property type, single family listings command the most at a median $2,800, and condo listings the least at $1,150 — a spread of $1,650 between the two ends of the same ZIP.
Rentals in 38138 average 49 days on the market. That is a normal pace, where a well-priced listing moves and an ambitious one waits. Of the 58 listings, 11 arrived recently, so roughly 19% of what is on the market is new supply rather than stock that has failed to move.
38138 Home Prices
What sellers in 38138 are asking, and the direction prices have moved over the last two years.
Median Sale Price
$444,900
all sizes
Median Price / Sq.Ft.
$171.11
Avg. Days on Market
91 days
Homes on Market
227
Newly Listed
13
Average Home Size
3,195 sq.ft.
Median sale price in 38138, month by month
−5.3% over the last 12 months
1 month
−0.9% (-$4,100)
3 months
−1.1% (-$5,100)
12 months
−5.3% (-$25,000)
Median Sale Price by size and property type
| Size | Median Sale Price | Per Sq.Ft. | On Market |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2 Beds | $249,500 | $173.25 | 27 |
| 3 Beds | $380,000 | $167.61 | 28 |
| 4 Beds | $449,000 | $164.94 | 88 |
| 5 Beds | $859,900 | $211.79 | 55 |
| 6 Beds | $999,999 | $162.85 | 5 |
| Type | Median Sale Price | Per Sq.Ft. | On Market |
|---|---|---|---|
| Condo | $219,900 | $157.59 | 20 |
| Land | $250,000 | — | 24 |
| Single Family | $515,000 | $182.30 | 162 |
| Townhouse | $274,900 | $174.46 | 21 |
Over the last twelve months the median price in 38138 moved from $469,900 to $444,900, a fall of 5.3%. The last three months moved 1.1%, in line with the year — a steady market rather than a turning one.
Across 38138, a 2-bedroom asks a median $249,500 and a 6-bedroom $999,999. The 4-bedroom is where the volume is, with 88 of the 227 listings on the market. Per square foot the order reverses, as it usually does: the smaller unit runs $173.25 against $162.85 for the larger one, so the bigger home is the better value by area even though it costs more in total.
By property type, single family listings ask the most at a median $515,000, and condo listings the least at $219,900 — a spread of $295,100 between the two ends of the same ZIP.
Homes in 38138 average 91 days on the market. That is very slow, and it is the clearest single signal on this page: listings sitting this long mean pricing is ahead of what the market is willing to pay. Of the 227 listings, 13 arrived recently, so roughly 6% of what is on the market is new supply rather than stock that has failed to move.
Is 38138 a Buyer's or Seller's Market?
Buyer's market — prices down 5.3%, time to sell unchanged, year over year
Buying into a softening market: an exit priced off today's comparables may not hold, so leave room in the numbers and be sceptical of an optimistic value.
The read combines two signals rather than one: the direction of median sale prices and the direction of time-to-sell. Prices still rising while homes sit longer is a market losing steam, and calling that a seller's market would be the reassuring answer rather than the true one — so when the two disagree, it says so.
Rental Yield in 38138
A median-rent home in 38138 collects about $30,180 a year against a $444,900 median price, which is where the 6.8% gross yield comes from. That is a moderate gross yield. Deals here tend to depend on financing, on buying below the median, or on appreciation rather than on monthly cash flow. Gross yield ignores taxes, insurance, vacancy, maintenance, management and financing, so treat it as a way to rank ZIP codes against each other rather than as a return you would receive.
38138 Compared to Other Memphis ZIP Codes
38138 ranks 4 of 6 on gross yield among the Memphis ZIP codes covered here, at 6.8% against 8.6% in 38671. 4 of the 6 are cheaper to buy into. Yield is only meaningful against the alternatives — the same rent buys a very different return a few miles away, and the table below is the comparison that makes the difference visible.
| ZIP | Median Rent | Median Price | Gross Yield | Days on Market |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 38671 | $1,755 | $245,500 | 8.6% | 24 days |
| 38134 | $1,550 | $249,900 | 7.4% | 36 days |
| 38016 | $1,850 | $319,901 | 6.9% | 29 days |
| 38138 (this ZIP) | $2,515 | $444,900 | 6.8% | 49 days |
| 38654 | $1,995 | $379,000 | 6.3% | 18 days |
| 38017 | $2,600 | $550,000 | 5.7% | 37 days |
Gross yield is annual median rent divided by median asking price. It ignores taxes, insurance, vacancy, maintenance, management and financing.
Find a Deal in 38138
Medians describe the middle of a market. Neither of these leaves you there.
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Know What One Memphis House Actually Returns
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- Rent estimated from the listings nearest that address, not the ZIP average
- Every monthly cost filled in before you see the number — taxes, insurance, vacancy, maintenance, management
- The cash needed to close beside the monthly cash flow, so the deal is answerable in one look
- Change the down payment or the rate and the return follows
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Stop Opening Listings One at a Time
Finding a deal by opening listings one after another is an afternoon spent to rule out twenty houses. Smart Rental Investor prices every listing in the ZIP at once and puts the ones that actually cash flow at the top, so the afternoon starts at the shortlist.
- Every active listing in 38138 ranked by cash-on-cash return, best first
- See where the deals actually cluster before you drive anywhere
- Rent, cash flow and cap rate already calculated on each one
- Set your own financing and the whole list re-ranks around it
- Keep the ones worth a second look and watch what happens to them
Making Sense of 38138
The figures above are only useful if you know what they do and do not say.
What Gross Rental Yield Actually Tells You
Gross yield is a year of rent divided by the price — in 38138, $30,180 against $444,900, or 6.8%. It is a screening number, and the word doing the work is "gross". It has not paid the property taxes, the insurance, the vacancy between tenants, the maintenance, a management fee, or a single dollar of mortgage interest. On a financed purchase those routinely consume half of gross rent or more. Its value is comparative: it puts 38138 on the same scale as every other ZIP so you can decide where to look, not what you will earn.
The 1% Rule, Measured Against 38138
The old rule of thumb says a rental should ask about 1% of its purchase price in monthly rent. In 38138 the median rent is 0.6% of the median price — a median home would need to rent for $4,449 to clear the bar, against the $2,515 it actually asks. That falls short, as it does in most of the country since prices ran ahead of rents. It does not mean no deal here works — it means the median does not, and a deal has to be found below the median or improved after purchase. Treat the rule as a filter for where to spend your attention, never as an underwriting standard.
Why These Are Medians, Not Averages
The median rent in 38138 is $2,515 while the average is $2,542 — a gap of $27. Half of what is advertised sits above the median and half below, so no single expensive listing can move it. An average can be pulled by one outlier, and an average above the median, as here, is the signature of a handful of high-end listings sitting above the bulk of the market. When a figure elsewhere disagrees with this page, check which of the two it is quoting before assuming either is wrong.
Time on Market Moves Before Prices Do
Listings in 38138 average 49 days on the market. This is the number to watch if you want warning rather than confirmation: a landlord or seller cuts an asking price only after a property has failed to move, so time on market rises first and the medians follow weeks or months later. A market where prices are still climbing while listings sit longer is losing momentum, whatever the price chart says — which is exactly why the buyer's-or-seller's read on this page combines both signals rather than trusting either alone.
What a ZIP Code Boundary Hides
A ZIP code is a postal delivery route, not a neighbourhood. 38138 spans streets that can trade very differently, and the $2,452 spread between its cheapest and dearest size band is a floor on that variation, not a ceiling — the same size of home on two streets here will not fetch the same rent. This is why the breakdowns by size and property type on this page matter more than the headline median for any particular address, and why a specific property still has to be priced on its own comparables rather than on a Memphis, TN average.
Asking Prices Are Not Closed Prices
Everything here aggregates what is currently advertised in 38138 — what owners and landlords are asking today. Closed transactions are recorded later and, in a moving market, lower: sellers negotiate. That makes asking data the earlier signal and the recorded-sale data the more certain one, and the two disagree most precisely when the market is turning and you most want to know. Use this page to understand direction and relative value; verify any specific number against the closing record before you commit to it.
38138 Market Questions
- What is the average rent in 38138?
- The median advertised rent in ZIP 38138 is $2,515 a month across all property sizes. By size: 1-bedroom $1,298, 2-bedroom $1,350, 3-bedroom $2,495, 4-bedroom $2,800, 5-bedroom $3,750. The median is a better guide than an average here because a handful of expensive listings would pull an average away from what most tenants actually pay.
- What is the median home price in 38138?
- The median asking price in ZIP 38138 is $444,900, or about $171.11 per square foot. That is what sellers are asking today, not what homes have closed at — in a moving market the two differ, and asking prices move first.
- Is 38138 a good place to buy a rental property?
- ZIP 38138 has a gross rental yield of 6.8% — $30,180 of annual rent against a $444,900 median price. Gross yield ignores taxes, insurance, vacancy, maintenance, management and financing, so it screens markets rather than predicting a return. Whether a specific property works depends on its own price, its condition and its expenses.
- Is 38138 a buyer's or a seller's market?
- Buyer's market — prices down 5.3%, time to sell unchanged, year over year. That combines two signals measured over twelve months — the direction of median asking prices and the direction of time-to-sell — because either one alone can mislead. Prices rising while homes sit longer, for instance, is a market losing momentum rather than a strong one.
- How long do rentals sit on the market in 38138?
- The average rental listing in ZIP 38138 has been advertised 49 days. Time on market is the earliest signal of a shift: it moves before medians do, because landlords cut a price only after a unit has failed to let.
- What size property offers the best value per square foot in 38138?
- On a per-square-foot basis, 5-bedroom listings are the lowest in ZIP 38138 at $0.94. Larger homes almost always cost less per square foot than smaller ones, so this is a comparison of value by area, not a claim that they are cheaper to rent.
- Where does this 38138 market data come from?
- The figures aggregate properties currently advertised in ZIP 38138, compiled from public listing data and third-party market data sources and last refreshed September 12, 2026. They describe asking rents and asking prices rather than closed transactions, and they are updated on a schedule rather than in real time.
- How does 38138 compare to the rest of Memphis, TN?
- The comparison table on this page sets 38138 against the other Memphis, TN ZIP codes covered here, on median rent, median price, gross yield and time on market. A yield only means something next to the alternatives — the same rent can buy a very different return a few miles away.
How these figures are produced
Every figure on this page is an aggregate of properties currently advertised in ZIP 38138, compiled from public listing data and third-party market data sources, and refreshed on a schedule. The trend charts cover the 24 months of history available for this ZIP. Two limits are worth stating plainly. These are asking prices and asking rents, not closed transactions, so in a market that is turning they lead recorded sale prices by some months. And a ZIP code is a postal boundary, not a neighbourhood: a single ZIP can contain streets that trade very differently, which is why the breakdowns by size and property type matter more than the headline median for any particular address.
Disclaimer: Figures are estimates generated from third-party market data and the assumptions provided, for informational purposes only — not an appraisal and not financial, legal, or tax advice. Actual prices, rents, costs, and returns can differ materially. Verify key figures independently and consult qualified professionals before making investment decisions.
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