Boone (IN) Investor Pulse Report (2025-Q4)

Investors hold a 9.1% share of the Single-Family Residential market in Boone County, with a total portfolio of 2,231 properties.

Individual 'mom-and-pop' investors form the backbone of the market, owning 1,497 properties (67.1%), more than double the 746 properties (33.4%) owned by companies.

The market shows a strong preference for all-cash holdings over financing. Investors own 1,755 properties with cash, nearly four times the 476 properties that are financed, indicating a low-leverage, high-equity position among local landlords.

The total number of unique landlord entities (2,262) is slightly higher than the number of properties they own (2,231), confirming that the market is dominated by small-scale operators, most of whom own a single rental property.

The portfolio is clearly geared towards generating rental income, with 2,151 of the 2,231 properties classified as rented, representing 96.4% of all investor-owned SFRs.

In the most recent active quarter (Q2 2025), landlords acquired properties at an average price of $201,875, a staggering 57.7% less than the $477,336 paid by traditional homeowners.

This investor discount represents a significant financial advantage, averaging $275,461 per property in Q2 2025.

The price advantage for landlords appears to be increasing. The discount grew substantially from 26.8% in Q1 2025, indicating that in a low-volume market, the few deals being done by investors are at exceptionally favorable prices.

A sharp decline in acquisition volume is evident, with data showing zero properties purchased by landlords in Q4 2024 and through most of 2025, pointing to a significant market slowdown or a shift to non-traditional acquisition methods.

The average investor acquisition price during the 2020-2023 boom years was $288,257, which is higher than the Q2 2025 price, bucking typical appreciation trends and highlighting the unusual nature of recent transactions.

Investor activity came to a complete standstill in Q4 2025, with landlords making zero purchases out of the 8 total SFRs sold in Boone County.

This halt in activity was universal across all investor sizes, from single-property mom-and-pop landlords to the largest institutional firms, none of whom recorded a single acquisition.

The data signals a dramatic shift from previous periods of active buying to a 'wait-and-see' approach, suggesting investors perceive current market conditions as unfavorable for new acquisitions.

The lack of new purchases means there was no entry of new landlords into the market during Q4 2025, a pause in the typical growth of the small-investor base.

This complete absence of investor demand stands in stark contrast to their typical market presence, highlighting a significant change in investor sentiment at the close of 2025.

The investor market in Boone County is overwhelmingly controlled by small-scale operators. Mom-and-pop landlords (1-10 properties) own a combined 83.8% of all investor-held SFRs.

First-time and single-property landlords (Tier 01) are the most significant group, single-handedly owning 1,425 properties, which accounts for 62.3% of the entire investor portfolio.

While small landlords dominate, institutional investors (Tier 09) have a surprisingly strong foothold, controlling 215 properties, or 9.4% of the market. This is a substantial concentration for a single large-scale tier.

The middle of the market is very thin. Mid-size landlords (11-1000 properties) collectively own just 6.8% of the investor-owned properties, indicating a market structure of many small players and a few very large ones, with little in between.

The data confirms that despite narratives about large corporations, the local rental market is primarily supplied by small, local landlords.

A clear pattern emerges based on portfolio size: individual investors dominate smaller portfolios, while companies control larger ones.

The tipping point occurs at the 6-10 property tier (Tier 04), where companies take majority ownership, holding 72 properties (61.0%) compared to 46 properties held by individuals.

For the smallest investors, individual ownership is standard. Individuals own 86.1% of single-property portfolios and 62.8% of two-property portfolios.

The trend toward incorporation accelerates dramatically past the crossover point. In the 11-20 property tier, companies own 55 properties, representing a near-total dominance of 98.2%.

This structure suggests that scaling an investment portfolio beyond five properties in Boone County typically involves formalizing the business into a corporate entity for liability, financing, or operational reasons.

Investor ownership in Boone County is not evenly distributed but is instead highly concentrated in a few key areas. The top three zip codes by property count (46052, 46077, 46075) contain 1,949 properties, representing 87.4% of all investor-owned SFRs in the county.

The 46052 zip code (Lebanon) is the epicenter of investor activity, with 816 properties owned by landlords, more than any other area.

While 46052 leads in volume, other zip codes demonstrate a higher market saturation. Zip code 46102 has a 37.4% investor ownership rate, indicating that over one-third of all SFRs there are rentals.

The 100.0% investor ownership rate reported in 46268 is likely a data anomaly, possibly reflecting a single property in a zip code with very few SFRs, and does not represent a broader market trend.

This geographic concentration suggests that investors are targeting specific neighborhoods or communities, rather than buying opportunistically across the entire county.

A significant trend reversal occurred between 2024 and 2025. In 2024, landlords were aggressive accumulators, buying 6.5 times more properties than they sold (202 buys vs. 31 sells).

This buying frenzy subsided in 2025, with transaction levels becoming perfectly balanced year-to-date at 11 buys and 11 sells, indicating a shift from an expansionary to a neutral market position.

The most recent quarterly data (Q2 2025) shows landlords as slight net buyers, with 6 acquisitions and 3 sales, but the overall volume is a fraction of 2024 levels.

This sharp decline in transaction volume and the move to a net-neutral position suggests that investors have paused their aggressive growth strategies, likely in response to changing economic or market conditions.

No specific transaction data was available for institutional (1000+) investors, so their specific contribution to this trend cannot be isolated.

The final quarter of 2025 saw a complete freeze in investor transaction activity in Boone County. Of the 12 total SFR transactions that occurred, none involved a landlord as a buyer.

This market absence was consistent across all investor types, with zero purchases recorded by small mom-and-pop landlords and zero by large institutional firms.

The lack of landlord participation in the market is a stark deviation from their typical activity levels and points to a significant, albeit potentially temporary, withdrawal from making new investments.

Consequently, no data is available on Q4 acquisition prices by tier or the prevalence of landlord-to-landlord transactions, as no such deals took place.

This inactivity could signal investor concerns about pricing, interest rates, or future rent growth, leading them to remain on the sidelines heading into the new year.