Crawford (KS) Investor Pulse Report (2025-Q4)

Investor ownership constitutes a significant portion of the housing market in Crawford County, with 3,914 of the 12,017 Single-Family Residential properties (32.6%) held by landlords.

Individual investors are the backbone of the rental market, owning 2,760 properties, which accounts for 70.5% of the investor-owned portfolio. Company investors hold the remaining 1,173 properties (30.0%).

A clear preference for debt-free ownership is evident, as investors hold 3,435 properties in cash, a figure more than seven times greater than the 479 properties that are financed.

The market is composed of a large base of individual operators, with 2,892 individual landlords compared to just 306 company landlords. This 9.5-to-1 ratio of individuals to companies highlights the granular nature of SFR investment in the area.

The portfolio is heavily focused on rental use, with 3,735 of the 3,914 investor-owned properties identified as rented, demonstrating a high utilization rate for investment purposes.

Investor purchasing in Q4 2025 was characterized by an exceptionally deep discount. The single landlord acquisition was priced at $62,500, a staggering $157,051 (or 71.5%) below the average traditional homeowner price of $219,551.

The pricing relationship between landlords and homeowners has been erratic, indicating a thin and fluctuating market. While landlords secured a massive discount in Q4, they paid a 14.0% premium ($190,071 vs. $166,699) in Q3 and a 16.2% premium ($210,525 vs. $181,112) in Q1 2025.

Despite the Q4 anomaly, average acquisition prices show a clear upward trend from the pandemic era. The average price during 2020-2023 was $109,148, substantially lower than the prices observed throughout 2024 ($142,814) and 2025 ($187,390).

The extremely low volume of landlord purchases, with zero recorded in most recent quarters and only one in Q4, suggests that the average prices are based on isolated, opportunistic deals rather than broad market trends.

Investor activity in Crawford County slowed to a near standstill in Q4 2025. Landlords were responsible for only 1 of the 11 total SFR purchases, capturing just 9.1% of the market share for the quarter.

The mom-and-pop segment, typically the most active group, made zero purchases in Q4. This complete absence of activity from landlords in the 1-10 property tiers is a stark deviation from their dominant ownership share.

The entirety of investor purchasing activity was concentrated in a single transaction by a larger, mid-size landlord from the 101-1000 property tier. This suggests that only larger, more established investors may have the capital or strategy to remain active in the current market.

There was no new landlord entry into the market this quarter, as indicated by the lack of purchases in the single-property tier. This lack of new entrants could signal decreased confidence or opportunity for smaller-scale investors.

The quarterly data points to a highly illiquid and quiet market for real estate investors, with purchasing volumes dropping to minimal levels across all but one investor segment.

The investor landscape in Crawford County is defined by the dominance of small-scale operators. Mom-and-pop landlords, who own between 1 and 10 properties, collectively control 81.5% of all investor-owned housing.

First-time or single-holding investors (Tier 01) form the largest single segment of the market, owning 1,912 properties. This represents 47.2% of the entire investor-owned SFR portfolio, underscoring the importance of this group to the local rental supply.

As portfolio sizes increase, the number of properties held drops off significantly. Mid-size landlords (11-100 properties) own a combined 15.8%, while large investors (101-1000) hold just 2.7%.

The narrative of large-scale corporate ownership does not apply here. Institutional investors with over 1,000 properties have a negligible footprint, with only one property in their portfolio, accounting for effectively 0.0% of the market.

This distribution reveals a highly fragmented market structure, heavily reliant on a large number of small, local investors rather than a few consolidated players.

Ownership structure is strongly correlated with portfolio size in Crawford County. Individual investors overwhelmingly dominate the entry-level tiers, owning 1,774 (92.3%) of single-property portfolios and 285 (81.7%) of two-property portfolios.

The transition point from individual to corporate dominance occurs in the small-medium category. In the 11-20 property tier, companies take a majority stake for the first time, holding 129 properties (53.8%) compared to individuals' 111 properties (46.2%).

While individuals maintain a strong presence in the 6-10 property tier (54.8%), the share of company ownership rises sharply to 45.2%, signaling this as a key growth stage for professionalization.

This pattern illustrates a clear lifecycle: investors typically begin as individuals and may incorporate as their portfolios expand beyond 10 properties, likely to manage complexity and liability.

Even in larger tiers where they are not the majority, individual investors maintain a significant presence, demonstrating that not all large portfolios transition to a corporate structure.

Geographic analysis reveals a stark concentration of investor-owned properties within Crawford County. The 66762 zip code is the undisputed epicenter of activity, with 2,465 landlord-owned SFRs, representing 33.2% of its housing stock.

Beyond the primary hub of 66762, investor presence remains significant in other areas. The zip codes of 66743 (360 properties), 66763 (304 properties), and 66712 (278 properties) are also key submarkets for rental housing.

A key finding is the distinction between high volume and high penetration. While 66762 has the most properties, smaller zip codes like 66760 (75.0% investor-owned) and 66746 (60.4% investor-owned) show a much deeper saturation of investor ownership, suggesting these areas function primarily as rental communities.

The top five zip codes by ownership *percentage* are different from the top five by *count*, with areas like 66780 (47.0%) and 66734 (39.2%) demonstrating high investor density despite having fewer total properties.

This data illustrates that investor strategy varies by submarket, with some areas targeted for scale and others for rental market dominance.

A dramatic shift in investor behavior occurred between 2024 and 2025. Landlords in Crawford County moved from being aggressive net buyers to a neutral market position. In 2024, they added a net of 76 properties to their portfolios (134 buys vs. 58 sells).

In contrast, for the full year of 2025, transaction activity was perfectly balanced, with 43 properties purchased and 43 properties sold, resulting in zero net portfolio growth for the investor community as a whole.

The quarterly trend within 2025 reveals volatility. Landlords were net sellers in Q2 (6 buys vs. 16 sells) but slightly rebounded to become net buyers in Q3 (21 buys vs. 19 sells), indicating fluctuating strategies amid changing market conditions.

This trend from strong net buying to neutrality signals a significant cooling of investor demand and a potential shift towards portfolio optimization or cautious observation rather than aggressive expansion.

Institutional transaction data is not available, reflecting their minimal presence in the county's transaction flow.

The final quarter of 2025 saw investor transaction volume fall to a historic low. Landlords participated in only 1 of the 11 total SFR transactions, a market share of just 9.1%.

Activity was exclusively confined to the large investor tier (101-1000 properties), which was responsible for the single transaction recorded. This highlights a market where only larger, established players were active.

Mom-and-pop landlords (1-10 properties), who own the vast majority of rental stock, were completely inactive on the buy-side this quarter, with zero transactions recorded.

The single investor purchase was acquired at an average price of $62,500, significantly lower than prices in previous quarters, suggesting an opportunistic, below-market deal.

There was no inter-landlord trading in Q4, with 0% of investor purchases coming from other landlords. This lack of liquidity between investors points to a stagnant market where holders are not selling to other operators.