If you are looking at Andrews, Texas for rental property, the first thing to know is simple: this is not a big, high-volume rental market. It is a smaller, owner-heavy market tied closely to Permian Basin energy activity, which creates opportunity for investors who underwrite carefully and stay realistic about risk. In this guide, you will get a clear look at renter demand, rent levels, vacancy signals, property types, and the local factors that matter most before you buy. Let’s dive in.

Andrews rental market at a glance

Andrews is a relatively small market by Texas standards. The U.S. Census QuickFacts for Andrews city estimates 13,677 residents and 4,996 households, while Andrews County has 18,923 residents and 6,844 households.

What matters for investors is the renter base. Owner occupancy is high at 76.7% in the city and 78.5% in the county, which leaves an estimated renter pool of roughly 1,164 households in the city and 1,471 in the county, based on the same census data. That means you are investing in a tight, limited renter pool, not a deep metro-scale leasing market.

Household mobility also looks moderate rather than highly transient. According to the same census source, 88.1% of city residents and 88.8% of county residents lived in the same house one year earlier, which suggests many households are not moving constantly from lease to lease.

Why the renter pool still matters

A small rental base does not automatically mean weak demand. It means you need to be more disciplined about choosing the right property, the right rent range, and the right operating plan.

The local income picture helps explain why some households may continue renting. Census data shows median household income at $73,690 in the city and $72,242 in the county, while median selected monthly owner costs with a mortgage are $1,834 in the city and $1,882 in the county. By comparison, median gross rent is lower, which can make renting a practical option for households that are not ready to buy.

Andrews rents: what the numbers show

If you are trying to estimate income, it helps to separate census rent data from current asking rent data. They are useful for different reasons.

The Census QuickFacts data puts median gross rent at $1,350 in Andrews city and $1,305 in Andrews County. Both figures sit below the Texas median gross rent of $1,403, so Andrews is not especially expensive compared with the state overall.

Current listing-based rents are lower and vary by source, which is common in a thin market with limited inventory. Zillow’s Andrews rental market data showed an average rent of $1,208 with 20 available rentals as of March 20, 2026. The research report also notes median rent figures of $1,032 on Zumper, $1,125 on Realtor.com, and apartment averages on Apartments.com of $798 for a studio, $975 for a one-bedroom, $1,202 for a two-bedroom, and $1,604 for a three-bedroom.

The takeaway is not that one source is right and the others are wrong. The takeaway is that pricing in Andrews can be uneven, and you should not underwrite off a single rent comp or one listing portal alone.

Vacancy looks limited

For many investors, the more encouraging signal in Andrews is supply. Vacancy appears tight rather than loose.

According to NeighborhoodScout’s Andrews real estate data, the city vacancy rate is estimated at 2.5%. The research report also cites AffordableHousingOnline’s county page estimating a 1% rental vacancy rate. These are proprietary estimates, but paired with the small number of active rental listings, they point to limited available inventory.

That matters because a low-supply market can support occupancy when your property is priced correctly and kept in good condition. At the same time, thin inventory can make rent-setting harder because you may have fewer strong comparables at any given moment.

What property types dominate Andrews

Andrews is primarily a single-family rental market. NeighborhoodScout estimates the local housing mix at 74.6% single-family homes, 15.0% mobile homes, 4.7% small apartment buildings, 4.0% apartment complexes, 0.9% townhomes, and 0.7% other housing types.

That mix matters because it shapes both tenant expectations and operating strategy. If you invest here, you are more likely to compete with detached homes and mobile homes than with large multifamily communities.

The same source shows a home-size profile centered on three-bedroom housing. That suggests much of the rental demand is likely aimed at practical, livable homes with enough space for everyday household needs.

Older housing stock changes the playbook

Andrews is not mainly a new-construction market. NeighborhoodScout reports that 43.4% of homes were built from 1940 to 1969, 34.7% from 1970 to 1999, and 21.8% in 2000 or later.

For you as an investor, that points to a market where maintenance planning matters. Older roofs, HVAC systems, plumbing, electrical updates, and interior refreshes can have a real effect on occupancy, turn times, and rent potential.

This is also a market with limited new supply. Andrews County had only 72 building permits issued in 2024, according to county census data. That can reduce pressure from a wave of brand-new competing units, but it can also leave you with fewer fresh lease comps when you are evaluating deals.

Andrews and the Permian Basin connection

The biggest market driver to understand is energy exposure. Andrews sits in the Permian Basin, and that link is a major part of the rental story.

The U.S. Energy Information Administration says the Permian produced 45% of U.S. crude oil in 2023 and 48% in 2024, with continued growth expected through 2025 as prices and infrastructure support drilling. The same source notes that higher crude prices can support more drilling activity over time.

Local production reinforces that connection. The Texas Railroad Commission news page reported Andrews ranked ninth among Texas crude-oil producing counties in November 2025 with 4,868,771 barrels, though preliminary monthly production figures can be revised for six to eight months. The research report also notes Andrews was one of six Texas counties that together accounted for 19% of Permian oil production growth from 2020 to 2024, based on EIA reporting.

What energy exposure means for investors

In plain terms, Andrews can benefit when drilling activity, wages, and in-migration are rising. But like many energy-linked markets, it can also cool off when the cycle weakens.

That means your underwriting should stay conservative. The research supports using realistic vacancy assumptions, a turnover reserve, and a rent stress test that assumes you will hit at least one softer energy cycle during your hold period.

This is especially important if you are buying based on today’s strong conditions and hoping every lease renewal lands at the top of the range. In Andrews, durability beats optimism.

A simple rent-to-value screen

If you are comparing deals quickly, a rough gross rent-to-value screen can help. Using the county median owner-occupied home value of $195,700 as a benchmark, the research report estimates gross rent-to-value screens of about 6.1% using Apartments.com data, 6.3% using Zumper, 6.9% using Realtor.com, and 7.4% using Zillow.

Using census median gross rent instead, the screen is closer to 8.0%. These are not cap rates, and they do not replace full underwriting. They are simply rough tools for comparing opportunities in a market where rent levels and purchase prices may not move in lockstep.

Operations can make or break returns

In a market like Andrews, operations matter just as much as acquisition. The market is small, inventory appears limited, and housing stock tends to be older, so tenant retention and efficient turns can have a major impact on your returns.

The census data also shows that 37.9% of city residents and 41.0% of county residents speak a language other than English at home, while broadband subscription rates are high at 89.7% in the city and 89.3% in the county. That suggests bilingual communication can be helpful, and digital rent collection or tenant portals may work well for most households.

If you are buying remotely or building a portfolio in the Permian Basin, local execution becomes even more important. Leasing speed, maintenance response, and clean turnover planning can protect your occupancy in a market that does not have a huge renter pool.

Who Andrews may fit best

Andrews may be a fit if you are looking for a smaller, supply-constrained market and you are comfortable with energy-cycle exposure. It may also make sense if you prefer scattered-site rentals, detached homes, or select mobile-home opportunities over large apartment assets.

It may be less attractive if you need deep market liquidity, a huge volume of lease comps, or the kind of absorption you see in larger Texas metros. Andrews can reward patience and disciplined buying, but it is not the kind of market where you want to rely on aggressive assumptions.

Key questions to ask before you buy

Before you invest in Andrews, focus on a few practical questions:

• Is the property priced to today’s rent reality, not just a best-case asking rent?
• How much deferred maintenance comes with the age of the home?
• What does your cash flow look like if rents soften during a weaker energy cycle?
• How quickly could you turn the property if a tenant moves out?
• Do you have reliable local help for leasing, maintenance, and ongoing management?

Those questions can help you filter out deals that look good on paper but feel tighter once real-world costs show up.

If you want help evaluating rental opportunities in Andrews or across the Permian Basin, D.E. The Home Boss Group can help you explore investor-friendly properties, turnkey opportunities, and property management solutions with a practical local perspective.

FAQs

What makes the Andrews, Texas rental market different from a larger Texas city?

• Andrews is a smaller, owner-heavy market with a limited renter base, fewer active listings, and demand that is closely tied to Permian Basin energy activity.

What are typical rents in the Andrews, Texas rental market?

• Census data shows median gross rent at $1,350 in Andrews city and $1,305 in Andrews County, while listing-based sources in the research report range from about $1,032 to $1,208 depending on the platform and property type.

Is vacancy low in the Andrews, Texas rental market?

• Research cited in the report points to tight vacancy, including a 2.5% estimate from NeighborhoodScout and a 1% county rental vacancy estimate from AffordableHousingOnline.

What property types are most common for investors in Andrews, Texas?

• Andrews is mainly a single-family market, with mobile homes also making up a meaningful share of the housing stock and much smaller shares of apartment buildings, apartment complexes, and townhomes.

How does Permian Basin oil activity affect Andrews, Texas rentals?

• Because Andrews is tied to the Permian Basin, rental demand can strengthen when energy activity and wages rise, but investors should also plan for softer periods if drilling or completions slow.

Should you buy an older rental property in Andrews, Texas?

• Older properties can work well in Andrews, but you should budget carefully for maintenance, system updates, and turnover costs because much of the housing stock was built before 2000.