Ownership of the U.S. Rental Housing Stock by Investor Type: In Brief

December 13, 2022 R47332

Ownership of the U.S. Rental Housing Stock
by Investor Type: In Brief
December 13, 2022
Congressional Research Service
https://crsreports.congress.gov
R47332

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link to page 5 link to page 7 Ownership of the U.S. Rental Housing Stock by Investor Type: In Brief

n November 29, 2022, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD)
and the U.S. Census Bureau (Census) released data from the 2021 Rental Housing
O Finance Survey (RHFS), a triennial survey of the residential rental housing stock in the
United States.1 The 2021 RHFS provides information on the rental housing stock in 2020,
including information on ownership, management, housing configuration and amenities, finances,
and government subsidies. Data are available on both rental properties (i.e., one or more buildings
commonly financed) and units (i.e., individual residences).
This report uses the 2021 RHFS data to examine the profile of investors that owned rental
housing in 2020. It first presents selected statistics that summarize the investor landscape,
followed by selected key observations and considerations. More detailed data from which these
statistics and observations are derived are presented in Table 1 through Table 4. These nationally
aggregated data may not match the ownership landscape in a given local housing market. An
online table creator provided by Census allows users to explore the 2021 RHFS data along other
dimensions.2
Summary of the 2020 Rental Housing Ownership
Data
Selected statistics that summarize rental property ownership in 2020 include the following:
 There were 19.3 million rental properties, 85.6% of which were single unit
properties.
 There were 49.5 million rental units, 33.4% of which were located in single unit
properties and 33.1% of which were located in properties with 150 units or more.
The remaining third of units were located in properties with between 2 and 149
units.
 Individual investors owned 70.2% of rental properties.
 Individual investors owned 37.6% of rental units, but owned 70.2% of rental
units located in properties with four or fewer units.
 Limited liability partnerships (LLPs), limited partnerships (LPs), and limited
liability corporations (LLCs) owned 15.4% of rental properties.
 LLPs, LPs, and LLCs owned 40.4% of rental units, but owned 67.8% of units
located in properties with 100 or more units.
 Real estate investment trusts (REITs) and real estate corporations combined to
own 1.2% of rental properties and 4.3% of rental units.
 The remaining forms of ownership combined to own 8.7% of properties. These
forms include trustee for estate (2.7%), tenant in common (2.6%), general
partnership (0.7%), housing cooperative organization (0.05%), nonprofit
organization (1.4%), and other (1.3%).
 The remaining forms of ownership combined to own 9.2% of rental units: trustee
for estate (2.1%), tenant in common (1.2%), general partnership (1.7%), housing

1 U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, “HUD and Census Bureau Release Findings of 2021 Rental
Housing Finance Survey,” press release, November 29, 2022, https://www.hud.gov/press/
press_releases_media_advisories/HUD_No_22_242.
2 See U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and U.S. Census Bureau, Rental Housing Finance Survey,
RHFS Table Creator, https://www.census.gov/data-tools/demo/rhfs/#/.
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Ownership of the U.S. Rental Housing Stock by Investor Type: In Brief

cooperative organization (0.1%), nonprofit organization (2.3%), and other
(1.7%).
 The nonresponse rate to property ownership was 4.5%; it was 8.5% for unit
ownership.
Selected Key Data Observations and Considerations
Selected key observations and considerations about the 2020 rental housing investor landscape
include the following:
 Individual investors and LLPs, LPs, and LLCs combined to own the largest
shares of the rental housing stock (85.6% of properties and 78.0% of units).
 LLPs, LPs, and LLCs are not typically subject to the federal corporate tax.
Instead, income “passes through” these businesses to the individual owners, who
pay taxes on the income according to the individual income tax system.3
 Individual investors tend to have the largest ownership shares in smaller-sized
properties (i.e., properties with fewer units), while LLPs, LPs, and LLCs tend to
have the largest ownership shares in larger-sized properties.
 Some investors classified as either an LLP, LP, or LLC may be individual owners
who have structured their ownership through one of these business forms rather
than “larger” or “institutional” investors operating in one of these forms.
 Some owners more typically thought of as individual or “small” investors may
fall under the tenant in common classification. Tenancy in common is one way
multiple investors in the same property can choose to collectively own the
property, and which determines how an individual investor’s ownership shares
are dealt with upon death of the investor.
 REITs and real estate corporations have a relatively small ownership share
nationally, but could have a significant presence in certain markets.
 A REIT is a company that would otherwise be taxed as a corporation except that
it meets certain requirements, mainly that most of its assets and income are
invested in and derived from real estate, and that it distributes nearly all of its
profits to shareholders.
Rental Housing Ownership Data
Presented below are the full 2021 RHFS data on 2020 property and unit ownership as constructed
from the Census’s online table creator.4 Presented first are the data on the number and share of
properties by ownership type and size of the property, followed by the data on the number and
share of units by ownership type and size of the property.

3 For more information on the tax treatment of businesses, see CRS Report R43104, A Brief Overview of Business
Types and Their Tax Treatment, by Mark P. Keightley
4 See U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and U.S. Census Bureau, Rental Housing Finance Survey,
RHFS Table Creator, https://www.census.gov/data-tools/demo/rhfs/#/.
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Ownership of the U.S. Rental Housing Stock by Investor Type: In Brief

Rental Property Ownership
Table 1. Number of Rental Properties by Ownership and Size, 2020

Number of Properties by Units in Property (in thousands)
Current
100 to
150
Ownership of
2 to 4
5 to 24
25 to 49 50 to 99
149
units or
Property
All
1 unit
units
units
units
units
units
more
Total
19,328
16,550
2,215
419
75
15
11
45
Individual
13,572
12,003
1,422
130
12
1
1
2
investor
Trustee for
517
341
154
19
2
0
0
0
estate
LLP, LP, or
2,982
2,362
354
185
37
8
6
30
LLC
Tenant in
503
483
19
1
0
0
0
0
common
General
134
95
26
8
3
1
0
1
partnership
Real Estate
121
110
7
2
0
0
0
2
Investment
Trust (REIT)
Real estate
113
61
30
14
4
1
1
2
corporation
Housing
9
0
8
0
0
0
0
0
cooperative
organization
Nonprofit
268
224
16
19
5
1
1
1
organization
Other
242
180
51
7
2
0
0
1
Not reported
868
690
128
32
9
2
1
6
Source: U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and U.S. Census Bureau, Rental Housing Finance
Survey, 2021.
Note: According to the Glossary of RHFS Terms, “a property includes all housing units and structures
commonly financed. A property may consist of one building at one address, or a property may consist of more
than one building or more than one street address, if these structures are commonly owned and financed,
geographically proximate, and considered part of the same property.” See U.S. Department of Housing and
Urban Development and U.S. Census Bureau, 2021 Rental Housing Finance Survey Glossary of Terms,
https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/rhfs/technical-documentation/glossary/2021/2021-RHFS-Glossary-5-
24-21.pdf.
Table 2. Share of Rental Properties by Ownership and Size, 2020

Share of Properties by Units in Property (percentage)
Current
100 to
150
Ownership
2 to 4
5 to 24
25 to 49 50 to 99
149
units or
of Property
All
1 unit
units
units
units
units
units
more
Total
100.0%
100.0%
100.0%
100.0%
100.0%
100.0%
100.0%
100.0%
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Ownership of the U.S. Rental Housing Stock by Investor Type: In Brief

Individual
investor
70.2%
72.5%
64.2%
31.0%
16.0%
6.7%
9.1%
4.4%
Trustee for
estate
2.7%
2.1%
7.0%
4.5%
2.7%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
LLP, LP, or
LLC
15.4%
14.3%
16.0%
44.2%
49.3%
53.3%
54.5%
66.7%
Tenant in
common
2.6%
2.9%
0.9%
0.2%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
General
partnership
0.7%
0.6%
1.2%
1.9%
4.0%
6.7%
0.0%
2.2%
Real Estate
Investment
Trust (REIT)
0.6%
0.7%
0.3%
0.5%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
4.4%
Real estate
corporation
0.6%
0.4%
1.4%
3.3%
5.3%
6.7%
9.1%
4.4%
Housing
cooperative
organization
0.05%
0.0%
0.4%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
0.0%
Nonprofit
organization
1.4%
1.4%
0.7%
4.5%
6.7%
6.7%
9.1%
2.2%
Other
1.3%
1.1%
2.3%
1.7%
2.7%
0.0%
0.0%
2.2%
Not reported
4.5%
4.2%
5.8%
7.6%
12.0%
13.3%
9.1%
13.3%
Source: U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and U.S. Census Bureau, Rental Housing Finance
Survey, 2021.
Note: According to the Glossary of RHFS Terms, “a property includes all housing units and structures
commonly financed. A property may consist of one building at one address, or a property may consist of more
than one building or more than one street address, if these structures are commonly owned and financed,
geographically proximate, and considered part of the same property.” See U.S. Department of Housing and
Urban Development and U.S. Census Bureau, 2021 Rental Housing Finance Survey Glossary of Terms,
https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/rhfs/technical-documentation/glossary/2021/2021-RHFS-Glossary-5-
24-21.pdf.
Rental Unit Ownership
Table 3. Number of Rental Units by Ownership and Size, 2020

Number of Units by Units in Property (in thousands)
Current
100 to
150
Ownership
2 to 4
5 to 24
25 to 49 50 to 99
149
units or
of Property
All
1 unit
units
units
units
units
units
more
Total
49,547
16,550
6,065
5,470
2,725
1,055
1,296
16,387
Individual
18,635
12,003
3,878
1,364
415
99
81
796
investor
Trustee for
1,043
341
377
197
68
1
6
53
estate
LLP, LP, or
20,022
2,362
1,043
2,683
1,335
614
758
11,225
LLC
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Ownership of the U.S. Rental Housing Stock by Investor Type: In Brief

Tenant in
598
483
61
16
4
0
0
34
common
General
820
95
87
132
101
37
59
310
partnership
Real Estate
794
110
19
19
12
8
16
610
Investment
Trust (REIT)
Real estate
1,351
61
84
192
157
55
65
737
corporation
Housing
63
0
23
11
11
0
2
15
cooperative

organization
Nonprofit
1,159
224
32
275
196
75
101
256
organization
Other
861
180
115
104
93
39
19
312
Not reported
4,200
690
346
477
332
127
189
2,039
Source: U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and U.S. Census Bureau, Rental Housing Finance
Survey, 2021.
Note: According to the Glossary of RHFS Terms, a unit is “A house, an apartment, a mobile home or trailer, a
group of rooms, or a single room occupied as separate living quarters, or if vacant, intended for occupancy as
separate living quarters.” See U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and U.S. Census Bureau,
2021 Rental Housing Finance Survey Glossary of Terms, https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/rhfs/technical-
documentation/glossary/2021/2021-RHFS-Glossary-5-24-21.pdf.
Table 4. Share of Rental Units by Ownership and Size, 2020

Share of Units by Units in Property (percentage)
Current
100 to
150
Ownership
2 to 4
5 to 24
25 to 49 50 to 99
149
units or
of Property
All
1 unit
units
units
units
units
units
more
Total
100.0%
100.0%
100.0%
100.0%
100.0%
100.0%
100.0%
100.0%
Individual
investor
37.6%
72.5%
63.9%
24.9%
15.2%
9.4%
6.3%
4.9%
Trustee for
estate
2.1%
2.1%
6.2%
3.6%
2.5%
0.1%
0.5%
0.3%
LLP, LP, or
LLC
40.4%
14.3%
17.2%
49.0%
49.0%
58.2%
58.5%
68.5%
Tenant in
common
1.2%
2.9%
1.0%
0.3%
0.1%
0.0%
0.0%
0.2%
General
partnership
1.7%
0.6%
1.4%
2.4%
3.7%
3.5%
4.6%
1.9%
Real Estate
Investment
Trust (REIT)
1.6%
0.7%
0.3%
0.3%
0.4%
0.8%
1.2%
3.7%
Real estate
corporation
2.7%
0.4%
1.4%
3.5%
5.8%
5.2%
5.0%
4.5%
Housing
cooperative
organization
0.1%
0.0%
0.4%
0.2%
0.4%
0.0%
0.2%
0.1%
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Ownership of the U.S. Rental Housing Stock by Investor Type: In Brief

Nonprofit
organization
2.3%
1.4%
0.5%
5.0%
7.2%
7.1%
7.8%
1.6%
Other
1.7%
1.1%
1.9%
1.9%
3.4%
3.7%
1.5%
1.9%
Not reported
8.5%
4.2%
5.7%
8.7%
12.2%
12.0%
14.6%
12.4%
Source: U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and U.S. Census Bureau, Rental Housing Finance
Survey, 2021.
Note: According to the Glossary of RHFS Terms, a unit is “A house, an apartment, a mobile home or trailer, a
group of rooms, or a single room occupied as separate living quarters, or if vacant, intended for occupancy as
separate living quarters.” See U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development and U.S. Census Bureau,
2021 Rental Housing Finance Survey Glossary of Terms, https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/rhfs/technical-
documentation/glossary/2021/2021-RHFS-Glossary-5-24-21.pdf.

Author Information

Mark P. Keightley

Specialist in Economics

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