Columbus (NC) Investor Pulse Report (2025-Q4)

Investors hold a significant 29.4% share of the single-family residential market in Columbus County, with a total portfolio of 4,117 properties.

Individual 'mom-and-pop' landlords are the definitive market force, owning 3,773 properties, which accounts for 91.6% of the entire investor-owned SFR stock. Company-owned properties represent a much smaller segment at 370 properties (9.0%).

This individual dominance is also reflected in the entity count, where 4,624 individual landlords vastly outnumber the 281 company landlords, highlighting a market characterized by many small-scale investors rather than a few large corporations.

A striking 89.5% of investor-owned properties (3,686) are owned outright with cash, compared to just 10.5% (431) that are financed. This indicates a low-leverage, high-equity position for the average landlord in the area.

The portfolio is almost entirely dedicated to rentals, with 4,060 properties (98.6%) being non-owner-occupied, confirming the business focus of these property owners.

Landlords in Columbus County demonstrate a consistent ability to acquire properties below market rates paid by traditional homeowners. In Q4 2025, the average landlord acquisition price was $202,797, a substantial 24.2% less than the $267,625 paid by homeowners.

This price advantage translates to a significant monetary discount of $64,828 per property, providing investors with immediate equity or higher potential cash flow.

The size of this discount fluctuates quarterly, indicating a dynamic negotiation landscape. It was even more pronounced in Q3 2025, when landlords achieved a 36.7% discount ($90,319), compared to a 13.8% discount ($33,612) in Q2 2025.

Acquisition prices have shown strong appreciation over time. The Q4 2025 average price of $202,797 is 22.2% higher than the average price of $165,885 during the 2020-2023 boom years, reflecting overall market growth.

The consistent price gap across all recent quarters suggests that investors are leveraging sophisticated strategies, such as sourcing off-market deals or purchasing properties requiring renovation, to achieve lower entry costs.

Investor activity surged in Q4 2025, with landlords acquiring 35 of the 103 total SFRs sold in Columbus County, capturing a significant 34.0% of the market share.

The quarter was defined by the entry and activity of small-scale investors. New single-property landlords were the most active group, with 35 new entities purchasing 25 properties, representing 65.8% of all investor acquisitions.

Mom-and-pop landlords (Tiers 01-04) collectively purchased 35 properties, which accounts for 92.1% of all landlord buying activity. This demonstrates that the market's momentum is driven by small, independent investors.

Institutional investors (Tier 09) had a minimal presence, acquiring only 2 properties in the same period, making up just 5.3% of the investor purchase volume.

The data clearly shows a grassroots-driven market, with the vast majority of Q4 buying activity fueled by individuals and small entities rather than large corporations.

The investor landscape in Columbus County is definitively controlled by small-scale, mom-and-pop landlords (1-10 properties), who collectively own 97.7% of all investor-held SFRs.

This concentration at the small end of the market defies the narrative of corporate dominance. Single-property landlords (Tier 01) alone account for 3,444 properties, or 81.7% of the total investor portfolio.

As portfolio size increases, the number of properties drops off precipitously. Mid-size landlords (11-100 properties) control just 1.7% of the stock combined.

The presence of institutional capital (Tier 09, 1000+ properties) is negligible, with this tier owning only 5 properties, which equates to just 0.1% of the total investor-owned supply.

This ownership distribution highlights a highly fragmented market, reliant on thousands of individual owners rather than a handful of large-scale operators.

Individual investors form the foundation of the rental market in Columbus County, owning the vast majority of properties across smaller portfolio tiers. They own 94.4% of single-property rentals and 88.9% of two-property portfolios.

A clear shift in ownership structure occurs as portfolios grow. The 6-10 property tier represents a key transition point, where company ownership jumps to 41.8%, up from 18.6% in the 3-5 property tier.

While individuals still hold the majority in mid-size tiers (59.7% in the 11-20 property tier), the increasing presence of companies suggests a trend toward formalizing operations as landlords scale their businesses.

Even in the smallest tier, companies have a foothold, owning 195 single-property rentals (5.6%), indicating that some investors choose a corporate structure from their very first purchase.

This pattern reveals a market life cycle: investors often start as individuals and adopt a corporate structure as their portfolio and complexity grow, particularly after crossing the five-property threshold.

Investor activity in Columbus County is not evenly distributed but is instead focused in specific geographic pockets. The top five zip codes by property count (28472, 28463, 28431, 28450, and 28456) together contain 2,921 properties, representing 70.9% of all investor-owned SFRs in the county.

The zip code 28472 is the epicenter of investor ownership by volume, with 1,187 properties, where investors own 25.4% of the housing stock.

Analysis of ownership rates reveals different strategic targets. Zip code 28424 stands out with an exceptionally high investor ownership rate of 87.2%, indicating a market almost entirely composed of rental properties.

Some areas are hotspots for both volume and saturation. Zip code 28450 ranks in the top five for both count (431 properties) and ownership rate (39.5%), signaling it as a key area for rental investment.

This geographic concentration suggests that investors are targeting specific neighborhoods, likely driven by factors like rental demand, property values, and available inventory.

The investor market in Columbus County is characterized by strong and sustained accumulation. In Q4 2025, landlords were definitive net buyers, purchasing 54 SFRs while selling only 12, resulting in a net gain of 42 properties for the rental stock.

This aggressive buying behavior translates to a buy/sell ratio of 4.5, indicating that for every property an investor sold, 4.5 more were purchased by other investors.

This is not a recent phenomenon but a consistent trend. Throughout 2025, investors purchased 182 properties and sold just 44, and in 2024 they bought 185 while selling only 29, showcasing a multi-year pattern of portfolio growth.

Even institutional investors (1000+ tier), despite their small footprint, are expanding their local holdings. They were net buyers in Q4 (3 buys vs. 1 sell) and for the full year 2025 (4 buys vs. 1 sell).

This persistent net buying activity across all investor types signals strong confidence in the Columbus County rental market and a continued strategy of long-term holding.

In Q4 2025, landlords participated in 54 of the 161 total SFR transactions in Columbus County, representing a 33.5% share of all market activity.

A dramatic pricing disparity emerges when comparing investor tiers, revealing different acquisition strategies. The average purchase price for a new single-property landlord was $192,271.

In stark contrast, institutional investors (1000+ tier) paid an average of only $86,492 per property. This represents a 55.0% discount compared to what first-time mom-and-pop buyers paid, suggesting institutions are accessing a different class of deals, possibly distressed or off-market assets.

The data also reveals a professionalized deal pipeline for larger players. Institutional investors acquired 66.7% of their new properties (2 out of 3) from other landlords, indicating a robust market for portfolio trading among seasoned operators.

Conversely, new landlords sourced a much smaller portion of their deals from other investors (13.5%), suggesting they are more likely competing with traditional homebuyers in the open market.