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

Investors hold a significant 10.6% share of the Single-Family Residential market in DeKalb County, totaling 2,713 properties.

The investor landscape is overwhelmingly characterized by individual ownership, with 2,182 properties (80.4%) held by individuals compared to 585 properties (21.6%) owned by companies. This structure challenges the narrative of corporate dominance in the rental market.

A strong majority of investor-owned properties, 2,580 in total, are operated as rentals, confirming that the portfolio is actively used to supply housing rather than held for speculative purposes.

When it comes to financing, investor strategies are nearly evenly split. A slight majority of 1,506 properties are owned free-and-clear with cash, while 1,207 properties are financed, indicating a mix of risk tolerance and capital strategies among landlords.

The landlord population itself is heavily skewed towards individuals. There are 2,702 distinct individual landlords operating in the county, outnumbering the 372 company landlords by a ratio of more than 7-to-1.

In Q4 2025, investors in DeKalb County demonstrated a distinct pricing advantage, acquiring properties for an average of $272,812. This represents a significant 15.6% discount compared to the $323,134 paid by traditional homeowners, saving an average of $50,322 per transaction.

The landlord discount has been a consistent, albeit volatile, feature of the market throughout 2025. After narrowing to 8.2% in Q3, the price gap nearly doubled in Q4, indicating a renewed focus on acquiring properties below market rate.

The Q4 discount is a sharp contrast to Q1 2025, when landlords achieved a massive 31.4% discount, paying $95,883 less than homeowners on average. This volatility suggests landlords are opportunistic buyers, capitalizing on deals as they become available.

Acquisition prices have appreciated substantially since the 2020-2023 period. The average investor purchase price of $272,812 in Q4 2025 is 37.5% higher than the pandemic-era average of $198,390, reflecting broad market appreciation.

Comparing Q4 to Q3 ($297,106), landlords actually paid less in the most recent quarter, suggesting a cooling in the prices they are willing to pay, even as their discount relative to homeowners increased.

Investor activity accounted for a substantial portion of the market in Q4 2025, with landlords acquiring 61 of the 265 total SFRs sold, a market share of 23.0%.

The overwhelming majority of this activity was driven by small-scale investors. Mom-and-pop landlords (owning 1-10 properties) acquired 65 properties, making up 97.0% of all investor purchases and underscoring their role as the primary engine of investor demand.

New entrants are a key feature of the current market, with 64 new entities purchasing their first investment property in Q4. These single-property landlords alone acquired 47 properties, representing 70.1% of all investor buying activity.

In stark contrast to the activity from small landlords, institutional investors (1,000+ properties) made no purchases in DeKalb County this quarter, highlighting a complete absence of large-scale corporate buying.

Mid-size investors played a minimal role, with landlords owning between 21 and 1,000 properties collectively purchasing only two properties, further cementing the market's reliance on small, local investors for rental housing supply.

The investor-owned housing market in DeKalb County is unequivocally dominated by mom-and-pop landlords. Investors owning 1-10 properties control a combined 93.6% of the 2,713 investor-held SFRs.

Single-property landlords form the bedrock of the market, owning 1,842 properties. This single tier represents 65.5% of all investor-owned housing, indicating that the typical landlord is a small-scale, local participant.

Conversely, the presence of institutional investors (1,000+ properties) is negligible. This tier holds just 7 properties, accounting for only 0.2% of the investor portfolio and challenging any narrative of a large-scale corporate takeover in the county.

The entire mid-to-large segment of investors (owning 11-1,000 properties) collectively owns just 174 properties, or 6.2% of the market, further emphasizing the concentration of ownership among the smallest players.

Even within the mom-and-pop category, ownership is concentrated at the very low end. The 1-5 property tiers combined own 2,506 properties, which is 89.2% of the total investor portfolio, showing that the vast majority of landlords have very small portfolios.

Individual investors form the foundation of DeKalb County's rental market, owning the vast majority of properties in smaller portfolio tiers. For single-property landlords, individuals hold 88.7% of the homes, a pattern that continues into the 3-5 property tier (76.3%).

A clear shift in ownership structure emerges as portfolios grow. In the 6-10 property tier, company ownership rises to 36.8%, and in the 11-20 property tier, it reaches near-parity at 47.6%, signaling the point where investors professionalize under a corporate structure.

Companies definitively become the dominant owner type in larger portfolios. For landlords holding 101-1,000 properties, companies own a commanding 83.3% of the assets (5 of 6 properties), indicating that scale requires a corporate framework.

Even though companies dominate the largest tiers, their overall property count remains low due to the market's structure. The vast number of small individual owners means they control 2,182 properties (80.4%) in total, compared to just 585 for companies (21.6%).

This data illustrates a clear lifecycle: investors typically start as individuals and incorporate as their portfolios expand beyond 5-10 properties to manage complexity and liability.

Geographic concentration is a defining characteristic of real estate investment in DeKalb County. The top zip code, 60115, is the epicenter of activity, containing 1,169 investor-owned properties, which alone accounts for 43.1% of the entire county's investor portfolio.

The top five zip codes by sheer volume (60115, 60178, 60548, 60135, and 60112) collectively hold 2,219 properties. This represents 81.8% of all investor-owned SFRs, indicating that investment is focused on a few key areas rather than being evenly distributed.

A distinction exists between areas with high investor counts and those with high investor saturation. While 60115 has the most properties, zip code 60152 has the highest ownership rate, with investors owning 25.0% of the SFRs there.

High investor penetration is also seen in 60115 (14.2%) and 60548 (12.7%), suggesting these areas are mature rental markets where investors play a major role in the local housing ecosystem.

This data reveals targeted investment strategies, with landlords focusing capital in specific sub-markets, likely driven by factors like proximity to amenities, universities, or favorable rental demand.

Investors in DeKalb County are in a clear accumulation phase, acting as strong net buyers. In Q4 2025, they purchased 87 properties while selling only 22, resulting in a net gain of 65 properties and a buy-to-sell ratio of 3.95-to-1.

This aggressive buying posture is not a new trend; it has been consistent throughout recent history. For the full year of 2025, landlords added a net of 212 properties to their portfolios (293 buys vs. 81 sells), and in 2024, they added a net of 291 properties (355 buys vs. 64 sells).

A significant divergence in strategy exists between the overall market and the largest institutional players. While the market as a whole is buying, institutional investors (1,000+ tier) were net sellers in 2024, disposing of more properties (5) than they acquired (3).

This suggests that the market's growth is being fueled entirely by mom-and-pop and mid-size investors, while the largest, most capitalized players are either inactive or reducing their exposure in DeKalb County.

The high transaction volume on the buy-side demonstrates sustained confidence among local and regional investors in the county's rental market prospects.

In Q4 2025, landlords participated in 87 of the 431 total SFR transactions in DeKalb County, capturing a 20.2% share of all market activity.

A distinct pricing pattern emerged among investor tiers, revealing different acquisition strategies. The most active group, single-property landlords, paid the highest average price at $264,222 across 64 transactions.

Conversely, larger investors appeared to target lower-priced assets. The single transaction in the 101-1,000 property tier was for just $120,475, and another in the 21-50 tier was for $153,360, more than $100,000 below what new entrants paid. This suggests larger players may focus on distressed or value-add opportunities.

Mom-and-pop landlords (Tiers 01-04) dominated transaction volume, accounting for 85 of the 87 total investor transactions, while institutional investors (Tier 09) conducted zero transactions.

The market for inter-landlord trading is very thin. For the most active single-property tier, only 2 of 64 transactions (3.1%) involved purchasing from another landlord, indicating that most acquisitions are sourced from the traditional homeowner market.