In these three states, more than 15% of homes are purchased as investment properties

Investors are buying homes at the highest rate of total home sales in Missouri, Mississippi and Nevada, according to an analysis of second-quarter home sales by Realtor.com.

Nationally, about 10.8% of homes sold this quarter were purchased by investors, up 0.1% from the second quarter of 2024, although Realtor.com noted that overall sales numbers and homes purchased by investors declined year over year.

Where investors buy most homes

In these three states, investors account for more than 15% of homebuyers, according to Realtor.com research:

• Missouri (18.9%)
• Mississippi (17.1%)
• Nevada (15.4%)

Other states with significant investor buying activity included:

• Indiana (14.3%)
• Alabama (14.2%)
• Utah (14.1%)
• Oklahoma (13.5%)
• Texas (13.4%)
• Kansas (13.3%)
• Hawaii (13.2%)

Hawaii and Oklahoma’s share of investor activity declined, respectively, by 1% and 1.6%, Utah’s share was nearly flat at negative 0.1%, and the rest of the group increased year over year.

Nevada saw the largest year-over-year rebound in investor activity with 3.8% growth. Slowing demand around Las Vegas has depressed home prices, prompting investors to flock to the area, Realtor.com said.

In some states, the average investor purchase price is much lower than the average home sale price, both in that state and in the United States overall. Michigan was the cheapest state for investors to buy into this quarter, with the average investor purchase price at $118,000, less than half the state’s median price of $252,000.

Investors were also seeking to capitalize on value by purchasing homes priced below average in Maryland, Virginia, Delaware and Wisconsin. In these states, the median investment purchase price was between 40.7% and 45.4% lower than the statewide median home price.

These gaps indicate those states are seeing increased competition between homebuyers and investors for entry-level homes, along with investors looking to take advantage of locations where they see value in owning rentals, Realtor.com said.

At the same time, investors were more willing to pay a price well above the median sale price for homes in areas with high demand for luxury goods, such as Montana and Utah, which were 35.1% and 33.7% higher than the median price, respectively. Investors also paid a premium of 12.3% and 23.3%, respectively, for properties in New York and California.

How investor activism can impact your next home purchase

Small investors accounted for more than 60% of investment home purchases in the fourth quarter, far outpacing large institutional buyers, who represented about 20%, and medium-sized investors, who represented 18%. This means that most of the competition in today’s housing market does not come from large corporations, but rather from individuals and small businesses looking to rent or sell properties.

For homebuyers, competition can be intense. Low listings and strong investor interest can push up prices and make entry-level homes more difficult to find, especially in hot markets like Memphis, St. Louis, Kansas City and San Antonio, where investors make up at least 18% of buyers. In Memphis alone, one in four homes sold went to an investor.