Midland and Odessa price and tax differently, one commute apart.
The Permian drilling cycle sets rents and values here. USA Mortgage funds investors across Midland and Odessa. Houses sell quickly, and Midland reviews residential permits fast. Business-purpose loans only, terms set in underwriting.
You deal directly with the people who make the decision.
Two markets, one commute, a $135,000 gap
Midland lists at $435,000 and Odessa at $300,495 as of July 2026, a $135,000 spread across 20 miles of I-20, with an $89,472-versus-$78,058 income gap between the two counties to match.
The tightest labor market in Texas
Midland MSA posted 2.9% unemployment in April 2026, the lowest in the state against a 4.0% statewide average, anchored by the Permian Basin and Diamondback Energy's headquarters in Midland.
The rig count is the leading indicator
Metro rents fell about 26% peak to trough in the 2020 oil crash and are down 3.6% to 4.0% year over year as of June 2026, even with a firming rig count, so we underwrite to the cycle rather than the current peak.
Loan programs in Midland
Acquisition through exit, all funded or arranged by one lender.
Yes. We lend across Midland, Odessa, West Odessa, Big Spring, Andrews, Greenwood, Gardendale, and Stanton. We are headquartered in Bee Cave, outside Austin, and fund deals with our own capital. Every loan is business-purpose only, on investment property, and terms are subject to underwriting. See how we lend across Texas or talk to us.
How exposed is a Midland-Odessa deal to the oil cycle?
More than almost any other Texas metro we lend in, and an honest underwriting conversation should say so up front. The Permian Basin rig count stood at 263 for the week of August 7, 2026, up 3 for the week and the highest since July 2025, with WTI spot at $84.77 a barrel on August 11, 2026. That backdrop is supportive right now. But the Zillow Observed Rent Index shows metro rents fell about 26% peak to trough in the 2020 oil crash, from $1,571 to $1,158 in Midland, before fully recovering by 2025, and rents are down 3.6% to 4.0% year over year as of June 2026 even with the current rig count firming. A 6-month flip or 12-month bridge here carries commodity-cycle exposure a Dallas or Austin loan does not. We underwrite to the cycle, not just the rehab schedule.
How do property taxes compare between Midland and Odessa?
The tax stack inverts the price gap, and it moves DSCR by real money. A City of Midland parcel in Midland ISD stacks to roughly 1.47% of value a year (2025 rates, Midland Central Appraisal District), held down by an unusually low 0.121374 county rate. An Odessa parcel in Ector County ISD stacks past 2.09% before the hospital district is even added, based on 2025 adopted-rate reporting for the county, city, school district, and college. On a $300,000 rental that gap is roughly $1,900 or more a year in carrying cost for the lower-cost city. Investor assessments carry no homestead cap in Texas, so run the DSCR both ways before you commit to a submarket. Talk to your CPA or attorney about your specific parcel.
Are short-term rentals regulated in Midland or Odessa?
Both cities charge a 7% hotel occupancy tax on short-term rentals, and Midland requires registration. Effective February 1, 2022, the City of Midland requires STR owners to register through a Host Compliance portal and collect and remit the 7% tax quarterly; the city's own STR page states no zoning restriction, cap, or minimum-stay rule, though that is an absence on that page rather than a verified absence in the zoning code. Odessa also collects a 7% hotel occupancy tax on STRs. Demand here tends to be crew and contractor lodging that tracks the rig count rather than vacation traffic, so STR underwriting should follow the same cycle logic as any other income in this metro. Confirm current rules for your specific parcel before closing.
Midland reviews residential permits in 5 to 7 business days. Why not just use a bank?
Speed matters more here because the underlying market moves fast in both directions. Median days on market ran 46 in Midland and 47 in Odessa in July 2026, both clearing in about a month and a half, and Midland's own published target for a residential permit review is 5 to 7 business days, genuinely fast by Texas standards. Add Texas's non-judicial foreclosure process and first-Tuesday courthouse auctions in both Midland and Ector counties, and this is one of the fastest full-cycle markets we lend in. A bank underwriting timeline does not match that pace, and in a market this tied to the rig count, timing the exit matters as much as pricing the deal. As a direct lender funding with our own capital, we can move at the pace this market needs. Apply now. Subject to underwriting.
Which Midland-Odessa programs have a credit score floor, and which do not?
The asset-based programs have none; the documented ones start at 580 or 640.Fix and flip, bridge, and ground-up construction carry no minimum score, because they are underwritten on the property, the equity, and the finished value. DSCR and bank statement loans start at 640, conventional investment starts at 580, and transactional funding runs no credit check at all. We do pull credit on the programs that use it, but weaker credit is usually handled with lower leverage rather than a decline, and there is no hard credit pull to start a conversation. Subject to underwriting.
With Odessa listing at $300,495, which Midland-Odessa deals fall under your loan minimums?
It depends on the program, and $100,000 is the usual floor.Fix and flip, DSCR, and bank statement loans start at $100,000, running to $5M, $3M, and $3M respectively. SBA starts at $350,000 and portfolio blanket loans start at $500,000 across five or more doors. Commercial bridge runs up to $10M and ground-up up to $5M. With Odessa listing at $300,495 and Midland at $435,000 as of July 2026, most single-property deals here clear the floor, but a lower-priced door with a light rehab can land under it. Subject to underwriting.
How much do I need to put down on a Midland flip versus an Odessa rental?
Around 10% on the flip, around 20% on the rental. Fix and flip funds up to 90% of the purchase and up to 100% of the rehab, capped to ARV, so on a Midland purchase at the July 2026 median list price of $435,000 that is up to $391,500 from us and $43,500 from you (435,000 x 90% = 391,500). A DSCR rental goes up to 80% LTV, so on an Odessa purchase at its $300,495 median list price that is about $240,396 from us and $60,099 from you (300,495 x 80% = 240,396). Closing costs and reserves sit on top of both. Subject to underwriting.
Local rules move. Every tax rate, fee, ordinance and market figure here comes from a primary source and carries the date we read it, and we correct them as the rules change. Where a number is mid-change or we could not verify it, we say so rather than guess. Before you commit a budget, confirm anything that drives it with the city or county, and talk to your attorney or CPA on questions of law or tax.
Published by USA Mortgage Funding, LLC, NMLS #152588. Researched from primary sources by our team, drafted with AI assistance, and every figure checked against its source before publishing. Where an answer rests on a public record, that record is linked under it. Figures read on 2026-08-13.
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