Bond (IL) Investor Pulse Report (2025-Q4)

In Bond County, investors hold a portfolio of 672 Single-Family Residential (SFR) properties, which constitutes 13.3% of the total 5,036 SFRs in the market.

Individual investors are the overwhelming force in the local market, owning 622 properties, or 92.6% of the investor-owned inventory. In contrast, company-owned portfolios account for just 66 properties (9.8%).

This individual dominance is also reflected in the entity count, where 744 of the 796 total landlords are individuals, compared to only 52 companies.

Cash is the preferred acquisition method for local investors, with 536 properties owned outright versus 136 that are financed. This 4-to-1 cash-to-finance ratio suggests a market of well-capitalized, debt-averse local buyers.

The portfolio is heavily geared towards rental income, with 634 of the 672 properties being rented, a clear indication that 94.3% of investor-owned housing serves the local rental market.

In Q4 2025, landlords in Bond County acquired properties at a remarkably deep discount, paying an average of $126,357. This was 59.4% less than the $311,197 average paid by traditional homeowners, a staggering price gap of $184,840 per property.

This price advantage shows extreme volatility throughout the year. The massive Q4 discount followed a more modest 7.4% discount in Q3 ($13,119 difference) and a large 46.9% discount in Q2 ($103,020 difference).

Notably, investors paid a premium in Q1 2025, with their average price of $193,813 being 9.2% higher than the homeowner average of $177,446. This fluctuation suggests landlords are highly opportunistic, targeting specific undervalued properties rather than buying at general market rates.

A broader time-series analysis indicates a downward price trend for investor acquisitions. The average price paid by landlords in 2025 ($140,733) is substantially lower than both the 2024 average ($171,330) and the pandemic-era (2020-2023) average of $191,782.

Investor activity accounted for a significant portion of the Bond County market in Q4 2025, with landlords purchasing 9 of the 45 total SFRs sold, a market share of 20.0%.

The entirety of this purchasing activity came from small-scale 'mom-and-pop' landlords (Tiers 01-04), who acquired 100% of the 9 investor-bought properties. Institutional investors (Tier 09) had no purchasing activity in the county.

The market continues to attract new entrants, as the single-property tier was the most active. In Q4, 10 new or expanding small-scale entities acquired 6 properties, underscoring the grassroots nature of local real estate investment.

Activity was concentrated at the smallest end of the investor spectrum, with single-property landlords making up 66.7% of all investor purchases. The remaining activity was evenly split between two-property, small (3-5), and small (6-10) landlords, each accounting for one purchase (11.1%).

The investor landscape in Bond County is exclusively controlled by small-scale operators. 'Mom-and-pop' landlords, owning between 1 and 10 properties, hold 99.3% of all investor-owned SFRs.

Single-property landlords form the bedrock of the market, owning 493 properties. This single tier accounts for 69.5% of the entire investor-owned housing stock, highlighting the hyper-local and fragmented nature of ownership.

The next largest tiers are small landlords with 3-5 properties (15.4% share) and two-property landlords (9.0% share), further cementing the dominance of small portfolios.

In a stark contrast to national narratives, institutional investors with 1,000+ properties have absolutely no footprint in Bond County, holding 0.0% of the market. Even mid-size landlords are scarce, with portfolios larger than 10 properties making up less than 1% of the total.

While individual investors own the vast majority (92.6%) of rental properties in Bond County, a clear pattern emerges as portfolios grow. Individuals overwhelmingly dominate smaller tiers, owning 93.4% of single-property portfolios and 87.7% of two-property portfolios.

The ownership structure shifts decisively in the small-to-medium tiers. The crossover point occurs in the 11-20 property bracket, where companies own 2 of the 3 properties, representing a 66.7% majority share for the first time.

This trend suggests that while individuals are the primary entry point into the rental market, scaling beyond 10 properties often involves formal incorporation into a company structure for liability or financial reasons.

Even with this crossover, the absolute number of company-owned properties remains small. Companies own just 33 properties in the dominant single-property tier and only 66 properties in total across the entire county.

Within Bond County, investor ownership is heavily concentrated in the 62246 zip code (Greenville), which contains 339 investor-owned SFRs, representing 12.4% of that area's housing stock.

However, the highest market penetration is found elsewhere. The 62231 zip code (Donnellson) has the highest investor ownership rate at 33.3%, indicating that one in every three SFRs in the area is investor-owned.

The 62253 (Sorento) and 62262 (Pocahontas) zip codes also show high investor penetration rates of 19.5% and 18.3%, respectively. This demonstrates that raw property counts do not always align with the highest market saturation.

The zip codes 62275 (Pocahontas/Old Ripley) and 62262 (Pocahontas) rank in the top five for both total investor properties (88 and 81, respectively) and high ownership rates (10.7% and 18.3%), making them key nodes of rental activity in the county.

Investors in Bond County have been in a strong accumulation phase throughout 2025, consistently buying more properties than they sell. For the full year, landlords purchased 44 SFRs while selling only 11, resulting in a buy-to-sell ratio of 4.0 and a net gain of 33 properties.

This acquisitive trend accelerated as the year progressed. In Q4 2025, investors bought 14 properties and sold just 3, a net increase of 11 properties for the quarter.

The net-buyer position was maintained across all quarters of 2025, starting with a net of 12 in Q2 and 4 in Q3, demonstrating a persistent strategy of portfolio expansion among local investors.

The transaction data further confirms the complete absence of large-scale investors, with institutional firms (1,000+ properties) recording zero buy or sell transactions in Bond County for the periods analyzed.

In Q4 2025, landlords were a significant force in the market, participating in 14 of the 63 total SFR transactions, a share of 22.2%.

The entirety of this activity was driven by 'mom-and-pop' investors. Single-property landlords were the most active, conducting 10 transactions, while the remaining 4 transactions were carried out by other small landlords in Tiers 02-04.

A notable pattern in Q4 was the source of acquisitions: 0% of properties purchased by landlords were bought from other landlords. This indicates that investors are expanding their portfolios by acquiring properties from traditional homeowners or new inventory rather than trading assets among themselves.

Purchase prices varied significantly across the small tiers. Landlords in the 3-5 property tier paid the highest average price at $195,000, while those in the 6-10 property tier paid the lowest at just $50,000, showcasing diverse acquisition strategies even within the mom-and-pop segment.