In late 2021, 15 percent of homes purchased across 40 major metropolitan areas were purchased by investors. Thirty percent of properties purchased by investors in these 40 metro areas across the US were located in neighborhoods where the majority of residents are Black. The increase in institutional investors is sending ripple effects across the housing market, especially for tenants with lower incomes.
Mom-and-pop landlords own a larger share of properties that tend to be more affordable than investor-owned properties, and they serve larger shares of tenants of color. They are also less likely to evict tenants, and their tenants are more likely to struggle to pay rent. Compared with larger landlords and institutional investors, this consolidation of rental market ownership can leave small landlords and their tenants vulnerable.
Understanding who owns rental units is a first step toward ensuring a supply of affordable, quality rental stock—and to supporting landlords—but very little data on rental property ownership exist. To help fill the gap, we used publicly available local data to examine rental property ownership and analyze ownership patterns in Minneapolis and Pittsburgh, as well as in Philadelphia, building on existing analysis. Our analysis of rental property ownership can serve as a model for other cities seeking to target limited resources to small local landlords.
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