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

Individual investors form the backbone of Perry County's rental market, owning 527 of the 680 investor-held SFRs, a commanding 77.5% majority.

Corporate ownership, while smaller, represents a significant 22.8% of the investor market, with 155 properties held by 107 distinct companies.

The vast majority of investor-owned properties are purchased with cash, as cash-owned properties (564) outnumber financed ones (116) by a ratio of nearly 5-to-1, indicating high liquidity among local investors.

The rental focus of investors is exceptionally clear, as 649 properties, or 95.4% of the total investor portfolio, are classified as non-owner-occupied rentals.

While individuals represent the majority of landlords (578 entities), companies demonstrate a slightly larger average portfolio size at 1.45 properties per entity compared to individuals at 0.91 properties per entity.

Investors in Perry County demonstrate a consistent and powerful pattern of acquiring properties at a substantial discount, paying 44.8% less than traditional homeowners in Q4 2025.

The average Q4 landlord purchase price was $109,263, a stark contrast to the $198,063 paid by homeowners, representing an $88,800 savings per property for investors.

This pricing advantage is not a new phenomenon; the discount was even more pronounced earlier in the year, reaching 58.0% in Q3 and 57.9% in Q1 2025, signaling a sustained market inefficiency that benefits investors.

The data suggests investors are targeting properties valued significantly lower than the general market, a strategy that could involve distressed sales, off-market deals, or properties requiring renovation.

While investor acquisition prices have remained below $115,000 all year, homeowner prices have consistently stayed near or above $200,000, creating a persistent two-tiered market structure.

Investor activity accounted for 10.3% of the Perry County housing market in Q4 2025, with landlords acquiring 6 of the 58 total SFR properties sold.

Small-scale investors were the primary drivers of Q4 activity, with mom-and-pop landlords (1-10 properties) responsible for 4 of the 6 investor purchases, a 66.7% share of activity.

The market saw the entry of 2 new single-property landlords in Q4, reinforcing the trend of organic, small-scale investor growth rather than large-scale consolidation.

Institutional investors (Tier 09) were completely absent from the purchasing market this quarter, acquiring zero properties and underscoring their limited role in this geography.

Buying activity was distributed across various small and mid-size tiers, including single-property, two-property, and small landlord categories, indicating a diverse base of local investors rather than concentration in a single large player.

The investor landscape in Perry County is unequivocally controlled by small-scale operators, with mom-and-pop landlords (1-10 properties) owning a combined 93.1% of the entire investor portfolio.

Single-property landlords alone (Tier 01) constitute the largest segment, holding 433 properties and accounting for a 61.3% majority share of all investor-owned housing.

The influence of large-scale investors is minimal, with institutional landlords (Tier 09) owning a mere 3 properties, or 0.4% of the market share.

The ownership distribution is heavily skewed towards the smallest tiers, with landlords owning 1-5 properties controlling a combined 86.7% of the portfolio (433 + 47 + 132 properties).

Mid-size landlords (11-1000 properties) represent a very small fraction of the market, collectively owning just 6.5% of investor-held SFRs, reinforcing the local, small-investor character of the area.

Individual investors form the foundation of Perry County's rental market, comprising 86.2% of single-property landlords and 75.8% of those owning 3-5 properties.

A distinct crossover point emerges as portfolios grow: companies become the majority owners in the 11-20 property tier, holding a 58.1% share of the properties within that segment.

Corporate dominance intensifies in larger tiers, with companies owning 81.8% of the properties held by landlords in the 101-1000 portfolio size category.

The two-property tier shows a more balanced split, with individuals owning 59.6% and companies holding 40.4%, indicating this is often a transition point for investors to incorporate their holdings.

Despite the trend of increasing corporate ownership in larger tiers, the sheer volume of individual landlords in the smallest tiers ensures they remain the dominant force overall in Perry County's rental market.

Investor ownership in Perry County is highly concentrated in the 47520 zip code, which contains 162 landlord-owned properties, making it the clear leader by volume.

The zip code with the highest rate of investor penetration is 47118, where 25.8% of all SFR properties are investor-owned, indicating a strong rental market presence in that specific area.

The data reveals a key distinction between where investors own the most properties (count) and where they control the largest share of the market (percentage), with different zip codes leading each category.

Other areas with notable investor concentration include the 47588 zip code, with a 23.6% ownership rate, and 47520 itself, with a 17.8% rate despite its high volume.

Several zip codes, including 47137 and 47513, show no recorded investor-owned properties, suggesting investor activity is localized to specific communities within the county rather than being widespread.

Landlords in Perry County were strong net buyers throughout 2025, purchasing 62 properties while only selling 25, demonstrating a clear strategy of portfolio expansion for the year.

This expansionary trend halted abruptly in Q4 2025, when acquisition and disposition activities reached a perfect equilibrium with 6 properties bought and 6 sold.

The recent shift to a neutral position in Q4 follows a very active Q3 (24 buys vs 7 sells) and could signal a change in market sentiment, potentially due to price changes or a more cautious investment outlook heading into the new year.

This pattern of strong annual buying followed by a Q4 slowdown was also visible in 2024, when investors were net buyers of 28 properties for the year.

Institutional investors (1000+ tier) maintained a slightly positive position for 2025, ending as marginal net buyers with 6 purchases against 5 sales, though their activity was a tiny fraction of the overall market.

Landlords represented 7.1% of market transaction activity in Q4, with 6 out of 85 total transactions involving an investor buyer.

Mom-and-pop investors drove all Q4 buying activity, accounting for 4 of the 6 total landlord transactions, while institutional investors made zero purchases.

The average purchase price for new single-property landlords was $120,395, establishing a baseline for entry-level investment in the county during the fourth quarter.

Landlord-to-landlord transactions were rare, with only one of the six investor purchases explicitly sourced from another landlord, a deal made by a mid-size investor in the 51-100 property tier.

The data suggests that most investors in Q4, particularly new entrants, are acquiring properties from traditional homeowners or other non-investor sellers rather than from fellow landlords.