How real estate investors are propping up the U.S. housing market

How real estate investors are propping up U.S. home sales

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Of the approximately 86 million single-family homes and townhouses across the U.S., 17 million, or nearly 20%, are “non-owner occupied” — in other words, investor-owned.

Contrary to popular perceptions of institutional mega-investors hoarding U.S. real estate, 87% of investor-owned, single-family housing is owned by small-time entrepreneurs with 1 to 5 properties in their portfolio.

In fact, more than 90% are owned by investor-buyers with fewer than 11 properties, and large investors have been net sellers for six consecutive quarters, according to second quarter figures analyzed by BatchData, a real estate analytics platform geared toward investors, and CJ Patrick Company, a real estate consulting firm.

The shrinking volume of home sale transactions pushed the share of investor home purchases to 33% in the second quarter, a 15% increase from the first quarter but a 12% decline year over year, per BatchData.

The growing investor share reflects the stabilizing impact that segment of buyers has on the home sales market overall, the company says.

“Without this investor participation, many markets would face severe illiquidity and potentially destabilizing price volatility,” the BatchData report reads. Such price volatility, though challenging for sellers to navigate, could induce more owner-occupied transactions, however.

First-time homebuyer participation plummeted during the historically high-activity spring homebuying season, with BatchData assessing first-time homebuyer participation at 24% in the second quarter, an 8% decline from 2023.

By July, the typical U.S. household was earning roughly 46% less than recommended to afford a median-priced home ($439,950) when employing a common measure of affordability, according to the National Association of Realtors.

“With traditional buyers sidelined by financing constraints that doubled monthly payments compared to recent norms, investors provide critical liquidity in an otherwise constrained market,” the BatchData report reads.

Investors buy residential real estate for a variety of purposes, including to hold as rental properties or to renovate and flip for a profit. The number of homes flipped by investors has declined for two consecutive years, however, amid high single-family rental demand.

The 297,885 single-family homes and condominiums flipped in 2024 reflected a 7.7% decline from 2023 and 32.4% decline from the 441,000 homes flipped in 2022.

Home flipper profit margins slid to 17-year lows in the second quarter of 2025, eroded by high prices for pre-flip housing stock and rising repair costs. Concurrently, growing interest in “fixer-uppers” among owner-occupied buyers adds competition for fix-and-flip investors.

Despite softening market conditions for buyers, home prices remain prohibitively expensive for typical consumers, sidelining prospective homebuyers. Renter households rose 2.6% amid an overall decline in the homeowner population during the second quarter.

Investors have risen to meet that demand, too, says BatchData, stabilizing rental supply by adding new units through flips or renovate-and-hold strategies. With an average of just three properties each, individual investors own 41% of all U.S. single-family rental units.

States with the highest percentage of investor-owned homes in the second quarter were Maine (31.1%), Montana (31%), Alaska (27.2%) and Hawaii (26%). States with the lowest shares were Minnesota (9.3%), Colorado (10.1%) and Connecticut (10.6%).

Skyline Report says commercial vacancy rate on the rise in Northwest Arkansas

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Despite the overall vacancy rate increase, CBER Director Mervin Jebaraj called the area’s commercial real estate market “remarkably healthy.”

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — The latest Skyline Report shows Northwest Arkansas’s commercial vacancy rate has climbed to its highest point since 2021, but researchers say the market remains healthy thanks to steady growth in new construction.

In collaboration with Arvest Bank, the Center for Business and Economic Research (CBER) at Sam M. Walton College of Business conducts a biannual analysis of the latest commercial, single-family residential, and multifamily residential property markets in Benton and Washington counties. 

The report released on Tuesday examines just commercial real estate property for the first half of 2025. 

Compared to 5.8% in the second half of 2024, the overall vacancy rate for leasable commercial space reportedly rose to 7.2% in the second half of 2025. 

Researchers say this increase is largely due to nearly 400,000 square feet of warehouse space opening up as tenants moved into newer buildings, about 100,000 square feet of office space going from owner-occupied to for-lease, and several national retailers closing their stores and leaving behind retail space.

Of the three largest submarkets, the warehouse market led the charge in rate increases. Each submarket saw the following increases in vacancy rates:

  • Office: 6.8%
  • Medical office: 1.5%
  • Office retail: 7.1%
  • Office/warehouse: 5.1%
  • Retail: 6.6%
  • Retail/warehouse: 4.5%
  • Warehouse: 10.4%

Despite the increase, CBER Director Mervin Jebaraj called the area’s commercial real estate market “remarkably healthy.” 

“One comment we have heard from conversations with real estate professionals, is that while low vacancy rates are generally considered positive, in a growing and dynamic market like ours, very low vacancy rates can also create challenges with limited availability,” Jebaraj said. “One aspect of this report that also points to a healthy market is strong building permits that were well dispersed geographically and by sector.”

The report says the value of commercial building permits was $290.2 million and saw a 48.3% increase from last year. 

“While this Skyline Report shows an increase in vacancy rates, the increase in commercial building permits demonstrates that our region continues to expand and remains balanced,” Gene Gates, executive vice president and loan manager at Arvest Bank of Fayetteville, said. 

Walmart’s new home office reportedly contributed to this increase, with $14.2 million in permits executed for the project in Bentonville. Without the permits for the home office, the area recorded a $276 million value of commercial building permits and still saw a 41% increase. 

The Skyline Reports on residential and multifamily real estate is expected to be released by the end of October. 

Zillow tried to stop off-market housing inventory—Compass is fighting back

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Compass adds Anywhere Real Estate brands Coldwell Banker, Century 21, and Sotheby’s to its portfolio—it’s arming itself for a showdown with Zillow.

Kathimerini: Bulgarians have become a driving force in the real estate market ᐉ News from Fakti.bg – World

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Bulgarians have become a driving force in the real estate market along the northern Greek coast, where resort towns such as Ofrinio, Nea Peramos and Iraklitsa are experiencing a real construction and price boom, writes the Greek newspaper “Kathimerini“ in an extensive article, BTA reported.

In the Kavala region, Bulgarians have turned from tourists into owners, local media report, citing information from brokerage firms. Our compatriots are looking for all kinds of properties – from caravan sites to three-story villas, and new construction is being bought up even “on the green”, inform construction companies in the region.

Today, there are almost no vacant plots for construction along the coastline of Ofrinio. The beach is dotted with construction machinery and new complexes, advertised as a “dream summer getaway”. According to local agents and developers, half of their clients are Bulgarians, and by the end of last year, 3,228 Bulgarian citizens had officially declared ownership in Greece.


With the increase in interest, prices are rising sharply, notes “Kathimerini”. From 900 euros per square meter in recent years, prices have reached 2,500 euros, and luxury villas for over 1 million euros are being bought even before they are built, architect Ritsa Karayanidou told the publication. While at first some of the purchases were made with “black money”, today families who use savings or loans, often with the intention of renting out the properties, predominate.

Although business and tourism are profitable, locals express concerns – their villages are crowded for five months of the year, The infrastructure is under strain, and Greek buyers are facing prohibitive prices. Negative sentiments are also emerging, related to the historical memory of the Bulgarian presence in the region, writes “Kathimerini“. The younger generation, however, is more pragmatic – for them, the Bulgarians extend the season and bring in income, the newspaper points out.

Doosan Weave the Central Suwon

Attention is focusing on the real estate market in the Seoul metropolitan area, where traffic is exp..

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Doosan Weave the Central Suwon
Doosan Weave the Central Suwon

Attention is focusing on the real estate market in the Seoul metropolitan area, where traffic is expected to be good. This is because the possibility of improving housing quality and rising housing prices is expected depending on whether transportation infrastructure is improved.

According to statistics from the Korea Real Estate Agency on the 23rd, the apartment sales price index in Jangan-gu, Suwon, which passes between Gwanggyo Central Station and Homaesil on the Shinbundang Line, was 100.63, up 2.6% year-on-year. The figure exceeds the average growth rate of Gyeonggi Province (0.7%) and Suwon City (2.3%) during the same period.

The apartment sales price index in Seo-gu, Incheon, which is considered a beneficiary of the subway line 5 extension project, which is undergoing a preliminary feasibility study, also rose 0.5% from the same period last year, in contrast to the overall decline in other areas of Incheon.

Individual apartments in favorable transportation areas are also on the rise. According to the actual transaction price of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport, the 84㎡ type dedicated to “Hwaseo Station Prugio Brissiel” in Jangan-gu, Suwon, rose about 66% from 78.39 million won in August 2023 to 1.3 billion won last month.

Subscribers are flocking to the new complex due to favorable traffic conditions. Gyosan Prugio the First, which was supplied to Cheonhyeon-dong, Hanam-si, Gyeonggi-do in May, recorded a competition rate of 263.28:1, which is the first public sale in Gyosan-gu, and the plan to extend Seoul Subway Line 3 to Hanam City Hall Station was reflected in the subscription results.

“Dongtan Fore Park Nature & Prugio” and “Dongtan Dream Forest Nature & Desiang”, where the Dongtan Urban Railroad (Tram) line is scheduled nearby, also recorded high competition rates of 75 to 1 and 41.9 to 1, respectively, in May.

An industry official said, “This is proof that consumers are paying attention to areas where access to Seoul is expected to improve,” adding, “If the transportation network is expanded, the effect of increasing convenience facilities around it is also a factor that raises consumers’ expectations.”

New apartment complexes scheduled to be sold near areas where good traffic is expected are also attracting attention.

Doosan We’ve the Central Suwon, which will be sold by Doosan Engineering & Construction in October in Hwak-dong, Jangan-gu, Suwon-si, Gyeonggi-do (Suwon 111-3 Housing Redevelopment Project), is considered an advantage to be able to use the new planned station (to be opened in December 2029) on foot. The complex will be built with a total of 556 households, with up to 29 floors and six buildings on the ground, of which 275 will be for general sale. .

POSCO E&C’s “The Sharp Sinpung Station,” which will be sold in Singil-dong, Yeongdeungpo-gu, Seoul in October, can use Sinpung Station on the Sinansan Line, which is scheduled to open next year. The complex consists of three basement floors, up to 35 floors above the ground, 16 buildings, and 2,030 households. Of these, 312 households are general sales volume.

Seoknam Station Central Park Grand Ver in Seo-gu, Incheon, where Bokwang Construction will receive subscriptions from the 29th of this month, is considered a beneficiary complex of the Cheongna extension line on Line 7, which is scheduled to open in 2029. The complex consists of three basement floors, up to 26 floors above the ground, three buildings, 198 apartments, and 32 officetels.

A panoramic view of the Financial Supervisory Service. [Photo = News1]

Among domestic financial companies’ investments in the overseas real estate market, 2.49 trillion wo..

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Financial Supervisory Service unveils investment status of domestic financial firms, “system risk transfer is unlikely”

A panoramic view of the Financial Supervisory Service. [Photo = News1]
A panoramic view of the Financial Supervisory Service. [Photo = News1]

Among domestic financial companies’ investments in the overseas real estate market, 2.49 trillion won was found to be feared to be insolvent in the first quarter of this year. As a result, investors’ caution in related products is required, the financial authorities said.

The Financial Supervisory Service said on the 23rd that 7.57% of overseas real estate operations (32.9 trillion won) invested by domestic financial companies had caused the loss of due profits. Loss of due profit means that a financial company has the right to immediately recover its loans due to delinquency of debtors and damage to collateral at overseas real estate investments.

The total balance of overseas real estate investment, including business investment, was 55.5 trillion won. By industry, the insurance industry invested 30.3 trillion won (54.6 percent), the largest amount.

It was followed by banks worth 12.1 trillion won (21.9%) and securities worth 7.5 trillion won (13.6%). In terms of regions, North America was followed by 34.4 trillion won (62.1%), Europe 10.3 trillion won (18.5%), and Asia 3.7 trillion won (6.7%).

Concerns about insolvency were mainly focused on the office sector, where the vacancy rate is expanding. Although the quarterly loss of profits is decreasing to 2.64 trillion won in the third quarter of 2024 and 2.59 trillion won in the fourth quarter of 2024, the authorities believe that the possibility of insolvency in the office sector is still emerging.

The Financial Supervisory Service pointed out, “The office sector is still delayed due to weak structural demand such as changes in work patterns and high vacancy rates, so there is a possibility of expanding losses in the future.” As of the first quarter, the vacancy rate for overseas real estate was 20.4% for offices, 7% for industrial facilities, 6.3% for apartments, and 10.4% for retail.

However, the Financial Supervisory Service added, “The scale of (overseas real estate) is not large and the loss absorption capacity is sufficient, so it is unlikely to be transferred to system risk.” The financial sector’s investment in overseas real estate accounts for 0.8% of its total assets (7392.7 trillion won).

Compass to Buy Top Rival, Further Condensing Brokerage Industry

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The proposed merger with Anywhere Real Estate would create a nationwide real estate behemoth.
How Real Estate Agents Can Reclaim Their Worth in a Changing Market

How Real Estate Agents Can Reclaim Their Worth in a Changing Market — RISMedia

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There’s a confidence crisis happening in real estate—and it’s not just new agents feeling it. Even seasoned pros are second-guessing their worth. With commissions under scrutiny, buyers questioning fees and sellers comparing agents like commodities, it’s no wonder so many are wondering: Am I still good enough?

The answer is yes—but let’s unpack why.

In this business, your value is about more than market stats and sales volume. It’s about trust, transformation and the courage to show up day after day in one of the most emotionally charged industries in the world.

Here’s what every real estate agent—whether new, rising or top-tier—needs to remember.

  1. Your self-worth is not tied to your current production. Just because you’re having a slower month (or year) doesn’t mean you’re not good at what you do. Markets shift. Life throws curveballs. Value isn’t measured by closings—it’s measured by consistency, heart and how many people you’re showing up for.
  2. You’re not “just” an agent—you’re a licensed fiduciary. It’s illegal to buy or sell real estate for others without a license. That alone should remind you: this is not a hobby or a favor. You’re legally and ethically bound to protect your clients. That responsibility is serious—and so is your worth.
  3. You don’t get “hired” to list homes—you get commissioned to carry risk. Every listing comes with up-front investment: time, energy, marketing dollars—all with zero guarantee of a paycheck. That’s not a favor from the seller. That’s a business agreement, and it deserves respect and fair compensation.
  4. Confidence is earned through clarity. Many agents struggle with explaining their value simply because they haven’t taken the time to define it. What do you bring to the table that makes a client’s life easier, their process smoother, their outcome stronger? Know it. Speak it. Stand behind it.
  5. You’re not here to convince—you’re here to connect. Not every client will choose you. That’s okay. The agents who thrive aren’t the ones who chase everyone—they’re the ones who align with the right ones. Let your value be a filter, not a sales pitch.

This market is challenging. The headlines are loud. The rules are shifting. But your value—your real value—isn’t just in what you do. It’s in who you are when the deal gets tough, the emotions run high and the stakes are real.

You’re a navigator. A protector. A guide. That’s not just valuable—it’s irreplaceable.

For more information, visit https://darrylspeaks.com/. 



Boomers control the housing market, and their enormous equity will keep them in place: Whitney

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Baby boomers now own a majority of U.S. homes and have the financial means to stay where they are, keeping the housing market stuck for the foreseeable future, according to top Wall Street analyst Meredith Whitney.

The CEO of Meredith Whitney Advisory Group, whose prediction of the Great Financial Crisis earned her the moniker “Oracle of Wall Street,” pointed out in a Financial Times op-ed that more than 54% of homes are owned by seniors, up from 44% in 2008.

She added that 79% of seniors own their homes, and three-fourths of them don’t have a mortgage, meaning they have an enormous amount of equity that can help cover rising homeownership costs, such as insurance.

“This has made it easier for seniors to hold on to their homes by tapping into some of this built-up equity,” Whitney explained. “And growth in such funding will be a major theme for the US economy in the next three to four years.”

The cheapest and fastest-growing form of consumer debt is now home equity lines of credit, demonstrating how much housing has become a financial resource, and seniors account for 41% of revolving home equity credit outstanding, she said.

Other debt products and new forms of credit are also available to homeowners who want to squeeze some cash out of their properties. The upshot is that housing inventory will remain limited as boomers are less inclined to downsize to smaller homes and have the financial means to stay put.

“That means the housing market will continue to be very different from before. There will be no quick fixes,” Whitney warned. “Even as 30-year mortgage rates decline, don’t expect existing home sales to pick up materially. Seniors control the proverbial chessboard, and with so many options, they aren’t moving anytime soon.”

That’s bad news for millennials and Gen Zers trying to enter the housing market.  In fact, the housing market has become so unaffordable for these buyers, the number of first-time home buyers shrank to a historic low.

In May, Whitney also noted that many boomers can’t afford to move out and have been borrowing against their homes to stay where they are.

To be sure, boomers collectively have $75 trillion of wealth. But that’s not distributed evenly, and Whitney estimated that just one in 10 seniors can afford assisted-living facilities.

“Seniors are living paycheck to paycheck,” she told Bloomberg TV. 

The drag from boomers on the housing market is just one of several. As President Donald Trump’s tariffs and immigration crackdown hit homebuilders, the supply of new homes is slowing.

Meanwhile, economic anxiety and still-elevated home prices are weighing on demand from prospective homebuyers, even as mortgage rates dip, and that’s spilling over to homeowners, who are increasingly pulling listings off the market.

The weak housing market even threatens to bring down the overall economy. The economist Ed Leamer, who passed away in February, famously published a paper in 2007 that said residential investment is the best leading indicator of an oncoming recession.

In the second quarter, residential investment tumbled 4.7%, accelerating from the first quarter’s 1.3% decline.

In July, Moody’s Analytics chief economist Mark Zandi singled out the housing market for concern, escalating it to a “red flare” as home sales, homebuilding, and house prices were getting squeezed by high mortgage rates.

At the same time, residential building permits—a key indicator of home construction—have been falling, and Zandi warned earlier this month that they are “the most critical economic variable for predicting recessions.”

That data is a major factor in Moody’s leading economic indicator, which estimates the odds of a recession in the next 12 months are now at 48%.

Even though it’s less than 50%, Zandi pointed out that the probability has never been that high previously without the economy eventually slipping into a downturn.

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OP&F revises real estate and private market policies

OP&F revises real estate and private market policies | News

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The Ohio Police and Fire Pension Fund (OP&F) has revised investment policies for real estate and private markets, according to correspondence from the pension fund.

While the prior real estate policy recommended a minimum of 30 percent of net asset value to be invested in core investments, the updated policy changed this minimum to 25 percent.

The Private Markets Investment Policy has changed the allocation range for secondary funds from 0 percent to 20 percent and private markets from 0 percent to 15 percent. The co-investment funds allocation range also was revised from 0 percent to 15 percent to 0 percent to 10 percent.

Geographic allocations were also revised, recommending 60 percent to 100 percent to U.S. allocations, as compared with the prior recommendation of 50 percent to 80 percent, with 0 percent to 40 percent recommended for non-U.S. allocations, from 20 percent to 50 percent.

As of Sept. 16, the OP&F portfolio was valued at $20.6 bill