Press Release
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August 28, 2025
Investors Buy Nearly One-Third of Homes Across US
IRVINE, Calif., August 28, 2025 — Cotality, a leading global provider of property information, analytics, and data-enabled solutions, today released its latest update on investor activity in the U.S. housing market.
Investor activity dipped slightly in the second quarter of 2025 but remains elevated compared to years past. In January, investors accounted for 32% of single-family home purchases. By June the share of investors had dropped to 29%, but that was still higher than the same time in 2024 when investors represented 25% of all purchases. It’s clear that investors are stepping in to meet the strong demand for rental housing as rising inventory levels, high home prices, and elevated mortgage rates continue to sideline many first-time buyers.
“Investors expanded their market presence significantly in 2025, building on historically high levels,” said Thom Malone, principal economist at Cotality. “This demonstrates their resilience in a high-price, high-rate environment. As these adverse conditions are expected to persist, investors are well positioned to meet rental demand. Their tendency to buy with all cash means high interest rates are less of a deterrent. Plus, current high prices can be offset by strong rental returns.”
Share of home purchases made by investors by month, January 2019 – June 2025
Data source: Cotality Public Records Data, 2025
Investor purchase levels will likely remain steady through the end of 2025. This year, investors bought around 85,000 homes per month, which is nearly identical to the 84,000 monthly average in the first half of 2024. While investor share is higher, a return to the purchase volumes of 2022 — when monthly investor purchases averaged 120,000 — is unlikely without similar price appreciation. However, the higher share of investor purchases in the market is largely due to a decline in owner-occupied transactions.
Monthly home purchases made by investors and non-investors, January 2019 – June 2025
Data source: Cotality Public Records Data, 2025
Medium-sized investors (owning 10–99 properties) have driven the recent increase in investor activity, growing their market share from 6% in June 2024 to 10% in June 2025. Small investors (fewer than 10 properties) remain the most common investor type, holding a 14% share of the market. Large investors (101–1,000 properties) accounted for 3% of purchases, while mega investors (over 1,000 properties) represented 2%.
Medium investors likely increased their presence due to their hybrid characteristics. Unlike small investors, they are more likely to pay all cash, and unlike mega investors, they are less diversified which makes them more committed to the housing market.
Share of investor purchases by investor size, January 2019 – June 2025
Data source: Cotality Public Records Data, 2025
Dallas, Houston, Atlanta, Phoenix, and Los Angeles are the top five cities for investors.
Dallas and Houston continue to lead the nation for both investor and non-investor purchases. Atlanta and Phoenix are known for high transaction volumes. Los Angeles stands out due to its high investor activity but relatively low transaction levels. Still, there remains strong investor interest in Southern California, with Riverside ranking twelfth in terms of investor activity.
Top 20 MSAs by total investor purchases, January – June 2025
Data source: Cotality Public Records Data, 2025
When analyzing investor share rather than total purchases, geographic diversity becomes evident. Only Los Angeles and Atlanta appear in the top five for both metrics. Dallas ranks first in total investor purchases but tenth investor share. In 18 of the top 20 MSAs, small investors consistently make up around 15% of the market. Variations in total share are primarily driven by medium, large, and mega investors. Atlanta, for example, would fall out of the top 20 without mega investor activity.
Investor share in the top 20 MSAs by investor purchases, January – June 2025
Data source: Cotality Public Records Data, 2025
Investor share appears to follow a seasonal pattern, rising in winter and declining in summer as owner-occupied buyers re-enter the market. Absent major changes in interest rates or macroeconomic conditions, the share of investors is expected to fluctuate between 25% and 30% in the foreseeable future.
Methodology
The Cotality Investor Purchase Indicator defines an investor as a buyer owning three or more properties. Investor categories are defined as follows:
Small: fewer than 10 properties
Medium: 10–99 properties
Large: 100–999 properties
Mega: 1,000+ properties
This indicator identifies purchases made by investors but does not infer the intended use of the property. Only arm’s-length purchases of single-family homes (detached and townhomes) are included in this analysis.
About Cotality
Cotality accelerates data, insights, and workflows across the property ecosystem to empower industry professionals to exceed their goals and positively impact society. With billions of real-time data signals across the property lifecycle, we uncover hidden risks and transformative opportunities for agents, lenders, carriers, and innovators. Learn more at www.cotality.com.
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