What is the cheapest Illinois city to buy an investment property?

Of the 15 cities on this list, Galesburg has the lowest median closed price at $107,000, measured across 220 closings tracked inside the city limits.

Which affordable Illinois market has the most transaction volume?

Rockford, with 1,022 tracked closings and a median closed price of $172,750. More closings means a deeper comparable set to price against.

Do these rankings include rent or cash flow figures?

No. Resideline does not have verified rent data for these cities, so this page ranks on entry price and transaction volume only. Publishing yields or cash-on-cash figures without rent data would be invention rather than analysis.

Do these figures cover the city or the wider postal area?

The city. Every median and count here describes closings inside the municipal boundary, which is usually a smaller and different footprint from the postal area that shares the name.

Best Places to Buy Rental Property in Illinois (2026)

There is no honest way to rank Illinois cities by rental return without rent data, and this page does not have it. What it does have is transaction evidence: the median price homes actually closed at inside each city's limits, and how many closings happened. That answers the two questions that come before any cash flow analysis, what it costs to get in and whether you can get back out.

What this page measures, and what it does not

Every city below cleared at least 100 closings in its reporting window, which filters out markets too thin to read. They are ranked cheapest first by median closed price, from $107,000 to $289,950. You will not find rent estimates, rent-to-price ratios, cap rates, cash-on-cash projections or gross yield rankings here. Resideline does not have verified rent data for these cities, so publishing those numbers would be invention rather than analysis. Entry price and transaction volume are what the data supports. Every figure describes closings inside the city limits, not the wider postal area that shares the city's name. The two can differ a lot: a postal area usually reaches into surrounding townships, which pulls the median toward whatever those townships are worth. Illinois's statewide median closed price is $320,000 across 79,754 tracked closings.

The rankings

City	Median closed price	Closings tracked	Window
Galesburg	$107,000	220	6 months
Decatur	$109,000	671	6 months
Rock Island	$130,000	273	6 months
Pekin	$140,000	303	6 months
Peoria	$140,750	944	6 months
Belleville	$150,000	382	6 months
Quincy	$170,000	360	6 months
Rockford	$172,750	1,022	6 months
Springfield	$188,900	912	6 months
Loves Park	$199,250	212	6 months
Belvidere	$221,000	183	6 months
Homewood	$247,000	155	6 months
Bloomington	$262,500	619	6 months
Round Lake Beach	$265,500	150	6 months
Normal	$289,950	350	6 months

1. Galesburg, $107,000, 220 closings

At $107,000 the entry price is about 33 percent of the Illinois median. Resideline tracked 220 closings there over the last last six months, roughly 37 a month. About 97 percent of those closings are houses, so the figure describes that segment rather than every property type. Full detail is on the Galesburg market page.

2. Decatur, $109,000, 671 closings

At $109,000 the entry price is about 34 percent of the Illinois median. Resideline tracked 671 closings there over the last last six months, roughly 112 a month. About 95 percent of those closings are houses, so the figure describes that segment rather than every property type. Full detail is on the Decatur market page.

3. Rock Island, $130,000, 273 closings

At $130,000 the entry price is about 41 percent of the Illinois median. Resideline tracked 273 closings there over the last last six months, roughly 46 a month. About 88 percent of those closings are houses, so the figure describes that segment rather than every property type. Full detail is on the Rock Island market page.

4. Pekin, $140,000, 303 closings

At $140,000 the entry price is about 44 percent of the Illinois median. Resideline tracked 303 closings there over the last last six months, roughly 50 a month. About 94 percent of those closings are houses, so the figure describes that segment rather than every property type. Full detail is on the Pekin market page.

5. Peoria, $140,750, 944 closings

At $140,750 the entry price is about 44 percent of the Illinois median. Resideline tracked 944 closings there over the last last six months, roughly 157 a month. About 88 percent of those closings are houses, so the figure describes that segment rather than every property type. Full detail is on the Peoria market page.

6. Belleville, $150,000, 382 closings

At $150,000 the entry price is about 47 percent of the Illinois median. Resideline tracked 382 closings there over the last last six months, roughly 64 a month. About 91 percent of those closings are houses, so the figure describes that segment rather than every property type. Full detail is on the Belleville market page.

7. Quincy, $170,000, 360 closings

At $170,000 the entry price is about 53 percent of the Illinois median. Resideline tracked 360 closings there over the last last six months, roughly 60 a month. About 92 percent of those closings are houses, so the figure describes that segment rather than every property type. Full detail is on the Quincy market page.

8. Rockford, $172,750, 1,022 closings

At $172,750 the entry price is about 54 percent of the Illinois median. Resideline tracked 1,022 closings there over the last last six months, roughly 170 a month. Full detail is on the Rockford market page.

9. Springfield, $188,900, 912 closings

At $188,900 the entry price is about 59 percent of the Illinois median. Resideline tracked 912 closings there over the last last six months, roughly 152 a month. About 90 percent of those closings are houses, so the figure describes that segment rather than every property type. Full detail is on the Springfield market page.

10. Loves Park, $199,250, 212 closings

At $199,250 the entry price is about 62 percent of the Illinois median. Resideline tracked 212 closings there over the last last six months, roughly 35 a month. Full detail is on the Loves Park market page.

11. Belvidere, $221,000, 183 closings

At $221,000 the entry price is about 69 percent of the Illinois median. Resideline tracked 183 closings there over the last last six months, roughly 30 a month. Full detail is on the Belvidere market page.

12. Homewood, $247,000, 155 closings

At $247,000 the entry price is about 77 percent of the Illinois median. Resideline tracked 155 closings there over the last last six months, roughly 26 a month. Full detail is on the Homewood market page.

13. Bloomington, $262,500, 619 closings

At $262,500 the entry price is about 82 percent of the Illinois median. Resideline tracked 619 closings there over the last last six months, roughly 103 a month. About 80 percent of those closings are houses, so the figure describes that segment rather than every property type. Full detail is on the Bloomington market page.

14. Round Lake Beach, $265,500, 150 closings

At $265,500 the entry price is about 83 percent of the Illinois median. Resideline tracked 150 closings there over the last last six months, roughly 25 a month. Full detail is on the Round Lake Beach market page.

15. Normal, $289,950, 350 closings

At $289,950 the entry price is about 91 percent of the Illinois median. Resideline tracked 350 closings there over the last last six months, roughly 58 a month. About 82 percent of those closings are houses, so the figure describes that segment rather than every property type. Full detail is on the Normal market page.

How to use this list

Treat it as a shortlist, not an answer. A citywide median cannot price a specific address: property type, size, condition and location move a number far more than the city line does. Run any address on this list through Resideline for the comparable set behind its value.

Figures last updated August 23, 2026 from closings Resideline tracked.