Lawrence (TN) Investor Pulse Report (2025-Q4)

Individual investors overwhelmingly dominate the landlord-owned SFR market in Lawrence (TN), holding 2,536 properties, which accounts for 91.7% of the total 2,765 investor-owned SFR units. This significantly dwarfs company ownership, which stands at only 267 properties (9.7%), reinforcing the prevalence of individual, mom-and-pop landlords in the county.

The investor market in Lawrence (TN) constitutes 23.0% of the county's total 12,002 SFR properties, highlighting a substantial landlord presence within the local housing ecosystem. This concentration indicates a significant portion of single-family homes are held for rental purposes.

A striking 79.1% of all investor-owned properties (2,188 properties) were acquired with cash, indicating a strong preference for unencumbered assets or a market where cash buyers hold a competitive edge. This contrasts sharply with the 577 financed properties (20.9%).

The vast majority of landlord-owned SFR properties, totaling 2,716, are rented, underscoring that the investor activity in Lawrence (TN) is primarily driven by rental income generation rather than speculative holding. This rental-focused approach aligns with the profile of individual investors.

By entity count, individual landlords number 3,140, making up 95.2% of all 3,299 landlords in Lawrence (TN). This ratio further solidifies the mom-and-pop investor as the backbone of the rental market in the county, with only 159 company landlords (4.8%) operating.

In Q4 2025, landlords in Lawrence (TN) acquired properties at an average price of $194,080, securing a significant 32.7% discount compared to traditional homeowners who paid $288,306. This translated to a substantial savings of $94,226 per property for investors, underscoring a clear pricing advantage.

The landlord-homeowner price gap experienced a notable shift, narrowing from an exceptional 44.0% ($119,012 difference) in Q3 2025 to 32.7% ($94,226 difference) in Q4 2025. Despite this tightening, the discount remains substantial, reflecting ongoing market dynamics favorable to investors.

Quarter-over-quarter analysis reveals fluctuating discounts for landlords, ranging from a low of 29.6% ($88,011 difference) in Q2 2025 to a high of 44.0% ($119,012 difference) in Q3 2025. This volatility suggests varying market conditions or property types acquired by landlords each quarter.

Landlord acquisition prices in Lawrence (TN) for 2025 averaged $182,683, representing a decrease from the 2024 average of $205,843. This trend indicates a potential market adjustment or a shift in the types of properties being acquired by investors in the current year.

While no properties were acquired by landlords in the measured Q1-Q4 2025 periods according to `section6-1.csv` distinct count (which suggests a data anomaly given transaction data shows purchases), the average prices for those periods still reveal a consistent pattern of landlords paying significantly less than homeowners across all quarters provided.

Landlords in Lawrence (TN) were significant buyers in Q4 2025, accounting for 49 (35.8%) of the total 137 SFR purchases. This highlights a considerable investor presence and demand for single-family homes within the county, with non-landlord buyers acquiring the remaining 88 properties.

Mom-and-pop landlords, encompassing Tiers 01-04, completely dominated investor acquisitions in Q4 2025, responsible for 52 properties purchased, representing 100.0% of all landlord purchases. This unequivocally demonstrates that smaller investors are the primary drivers of recent investment activity.

The Single-property tier (Tier 01) exhibited the highest purchase activity among all landlord tiers in Q4 2025, with 31 properties acquired by 48 distinct entities. This signifies a strong influx of new or expanding small-scale investors entering the market during the quarter.

Institutional investors (Tier 09) showed no purchase activity in Lawrence (TN) during Q4 2025, reinforcing the trend of smaller, local investors being the sole contributors to the landlord purchase volume. This absence of large-scale corporate buying distinguishes the local market.

Within the mom-and-pop segment, the Two-property (Tier 02) and Small landlord (Tier 06-10) tiers also contributed substantially, purchasing 10 (19.2%) and 6 (11.5%) properties respectively. This diverse activity across smaller tiers points to broad-based participation from local investors.

Mom-and-pop landlords, encompassing Tiers 01-04, collectively control an overwhelming 95.7% of all investor-owned SFR properties in Lawrence (TN). This segment holds 2,742 properties, illustrating their foundational role in the county's rental housing market and defying narratives of institutional dominance.

The Single-property landlord (Tier 01) segment represents the largest individual share of investor-owned properties, holding 2,191 properties, which accounts for a substantial 76.5% of the total landlord portfolio. This signifies that first-time or single-property investors form the vast majority of the landlord base.

Institutional investors (Tier 09, 1000+ properties) hold no properties in Lawrence (TN), confirming their complete absence from this local market. This stark contrast emphasizes the localized, small-scale nature of real estate investment in the county.

Even mid-size landlords (Tiers 05-08, 11-1000 properties) have a minimal presence, collectively owning only 122 properties, which accounts for approximately 4.2% of the total investor-owned portfolio. This further underscores the market's tilt towards smaller, individual owners.

The distribution clearly shows a highly fragmented market structure, where small landlords (1-10 properties) are not just the majority, but virtually the exclusive holders of investor-owned SFR. This pattern suggests a community-centric ownership model rather than large corporate entities.

Individual investors maintain a significant majority across all landlord tiers in Lawrence (TN) for which data is available, with no observed crossover point where company ownership becomes dominant. Even in the 'Small landlord (6-10)' tier, individuals own 51.5% (50 properties) compared to companies at 48.5% (47 properties).

The Single-property tier (Tier 01) exemplifies individual investor dominance, with individuals owning 2,111 properties (95.2%) while companies hold just 106 properties (4.8%). This highlights the strong individual entry point into the investment market in Lawrence (TN).

For Two-property (Tier 02) and Small landlord (3-5 properties) tiers, individual ownership remains overwhelmingly high at 90.9% (170 properties) and 86.7% (235 properties) respectively. Companies hold a marginal share of 9.1% and 13.3% in these tiers.

In the Small-medium (11-20 properties) tier, individual ownership still accounts for a substantial 76.9% (50 properties), with companies holding 23.1% (15 properties). This trend persists even as portfolio sizes grow, challenging assumptions about company scale in larger portfolios.

The complete absence of institutional investors (Tier 09) in Lawrence (TN) further reinforces the market as one largely driven by local, individual capital. This localized ownership structure is consistent across various portfolio sizes in the county.

The 38464 zip code in Lawrence (TN) leads significantly in investor-owned properties by sheer count, with 1,408 units. This represents 22.1% of its total SFR market, highlighting a substantial concentration of landlord activity within this specific area of the county.

Conversely, the 38486 zip code demonstrates the highest investor ownership rate at 33.3%, indicating that a third of all SFR properties in this area are landlord-owned. This signals a particularly high landlord penetration, even though its total property count might not be the highest.

The top five sub-geographies by investor-owned property count collectively represent a significant portion of Lawrence (TN)'s investor market, ranging from 1,408 properties in 38464 to 190 properties in 38456. These areas are key hubs for rental housing supply.

There is a clear distinction between regions with high property counts and those with high ownership percentages. For example, 38469 has 383 properties (31.3% rate), while 38481 has a 32.4% rate, demonstrating different market compositions and landlord investment strategies.

Acquisition prices are not provided for sub-geographies in Lawrence (TN) for Q4, however, the data reveals that investor activity is not uniformly distributed across the county. Instead, it shows pockets of high concentration both in terms of absolute number of properties and percentage of the market owned by landlords.

Landlords in Lawrence (TN) are strong net buyers in Q4 2025, executing 76 buy transactions against only 20 sell transactions, resulting in a substantial 3.8x buy-to-sell ratio. This signals a robust accumulation phase for investor portfolios within the county.

This net buying trend is consistent throughout 2025, with landlords acquiring 317 properties and selling 89, leading to a 3.56x buy/sell ratio for the year. Similarly, in 2024, landlords were net buyers with 246 acquisitions versus 72 sales.

A critical divergence in market behavior is observed with institutional investors (1000+ tier): while overall landlords are accumulating, institutional players were net sellers in 2025, selling 3 properties and buying only 1. This indicates a strategic retreat or divestment by larger entities in Lawrence (TN).

The data provided does not include the percentage of buy or sell transactions involving other landlords (inter-landlord), limiting insights into market liquidity and trading within the investor community itself. However, the strong net buying indicates fresh capital entering the market from non-landlord sellers.

Average buy and sell prices for all landlords are not explicitly provided in `section11-1.csv` for Q4, preventing an analysis of implied margins. However, the consistent net buying across multiple timeframes suggests confidence in the market's long-term value for investors.

Landlords in Lawrence (TN) were responsible for a significant 34.1% of all Q4 2025 SFR transactions, participating in 76 out of 223 total transactions. This highlights their considerable influence on the quarter's real estate market activity.

The Single-property (Tier 01) landlords were the most active, conducting 48 transactions at an average purchase price of $184,062. This indicates a high volume of new and existing small landlords actively engaged in market transactions during the quarter.

Notably, the Two-property (Tier 02) segment recorded the highest average purchase price at $309,974 for its 13 transactions. This suggests that these landlords may be acquiring higher-value properties compared to other tiers, potentially reflecting a strategy for specific property types or locations.

Inter-landlord trading was minimal in Q4 2025; for instance, Tier 01 landlords bought only 4 properties (8.3%) from other landlords, and Tier 06-10 landlords bought 2 properties (28.6%) from other landlords. This indicates that most landlord purchases originated from non-landlord sellers, bringing new properties into the investor pool.

Mom-and-pop landlords (Tier 01-04) collectively accounted for 75 transactions in Q4, while institutional investors (Tier 09) registered no transactions. This reconfirms the market's reliance on small-scale investors for transaction volume and growth.

The average purchase prices show a varied strategy across tiers: from the highest at $309,974 for Tier 02 to the lowest at $83,429 for Tier 06-10 landlords. This price disparity could reflect different investment objectives or property conditions targeted by various investor sizes.