Perry (IL) Investor Pulse Report (2026-Q1)

Investors hold a significant 16.9% share of the single-family residential market in Perry County, with a total portfolio of 1,107 properties out of 6,545 total SFRs.

Individual investors are the primary owners, holding 1,030 properties (a 93.0% share), while companies own 219 properties (19.8%). The overlap in ownership figures indicates some properties are co-owned by different entity types.

The landlord community itself is dominated by individuals, with 1,398 individual landlords compared to just 66 company landlords, a ratio of more than 21 to 1.

A strong focus on rental income is clear, as 1,031 of the 1,107 investor-owned properties are rented, a rental penetration rate of 93.1%.

Investors in the area utilize a balanced capital strategy, with the portfolio almost evenly split between financed properties (559) and those owned outright with cash (548).

In a striking reversal of national trends, investors in Perry County paid a significant 47.1% premium for properties in Q1 2026 compared to traditional homeowners.

The average landlord acquisition price was $194,437, which is $62,262 higher than the average homeowner purchase price of $132,175 for the same period.

This is not an isolated event but a persistent market dynamic, following a 34.5% premium in Q3 2025 and a massive 102.7% premium in Q2 2025.

The consistent price premium suggests that investors are targeting properties with specific features that command higher prices, or they are competing more aggressively in bidding than typical buyers in the local market.

Acquisition prices for landlords have also risen sharply, jumping to $194,437 in Q1 2026 from the 2025 yearly average of $154,122, signaling increasing competition or a shift in acquisition strategy.

Investors were a major force in the Q4 2025 market, acquiring 9 of the 40 total SFR properties sold, which amounts to a 22.5% market share.

The acquisition activity is almost entirely driven by small-scale investors. Mom-and-pop landlords (owning 1-10 properties) accounted for 8 of the 9 purchases (88.9%).

New market entrants were particularly active, with single-property landlords purchasing 7 homes, representing 77.8% of all investor buying activity.

Nine new entities entered the market at the single-property tier, indicating a healthy influx of first-time participants in local real estate investing.

Institutional investors with 1,000+ properties were completely absent from the purchasing market in Q4, underscoring the dominance of local, smaller-scale capital in Perry County.

The investor market structure in Perry County is overwhelmingly dominated by small landlords, with those owning 1-10 properties controlling 87.5% of all investor-owned SFRs.

Single-property landlords form the absolute backbone of the rental market, individually owning 994 properties, which constitutes 79.8% of the entire investor portfolio.

The influence of large-scale investors is virtually non-existent. Institutional landlords (1,000+ properties) own only 3 properties in the county, a market share of just 0.2%.

Mid-size landlords, owning between 11 and 100 properties, hold a combined 12.1% of the market share, representing a secondary but still important segment.

This highly fragmented ownership landscape indicates that the local rental market is supplied and managed by community-level investors rather than large, out-of-state corporations.

Individual investors lay the groundwork for the rental market, owning 980 of the 994 properties (97.2%) in the single-property tier.

A distinct strategic shift to corporate ownership occurs as portfolios expand. Companies become the dominant owners in the 6-10 property tier, controlling 93.3% of the homes within that segment.

This pattern of corporate ownership intensifies at larger scales, with companies holding 89.5% of properties in the 11-20 tier and 95.8% in the 21-50 tier.

Even with this trend, individual investors retain some presence in larger portfolios, notably holding 70.6% of properties in the 51-100 tier, defying the complete corporatization seen in other segments.

The data clearly illustrates a common investor lifecycle: starting as an individual and incorporating for liability protection and operational efficiency once a portfolio reaches about 6 properties.

Investor activity in Perry County is not evenly distributed but is instead highly concentrated in specific zip codes. The 62274 area is the epicenter of ownership volume, containing 413 investor-owned properties.

The highest saturation of investor ownership is found in the 62238 zip code, where 28.4% of all single-family homes are owned by investors.

The region with the highest count of investor properties, 62274, also has a substantial penetration rate of 20.2%, making it a key area for both volume and density.

There is a sharp decline in investor presence outside of these core areas, highlighting a targeted approach rather than broad market participation.

This geographic clustering reveals that investors have identified specific neighborhoods or communities as prime targets for rental property acquisition.

Investors in Perry County are actively growing their portfolios, consistently operating as net buyers in the market.

In the first quarter of 2026, landlords acquired 11 properties while selling only 5, demonstrating a clear strategy of accumulation.

The net buying activity was even more aggressive throughout 2025, a year in which investors purchased 120 homes and sold just 17, a ratio of over 7-to-1.

While still net buyers, the acquisition velocity has slowed in 2026, with the 11 purchases in Q1 falling below the quarterly average of 30 purchases seen in 2025.

No transaction data was available for institutional investors, confirming their lack of active participation in the market's buying or selling activity.

In Q1 2026, landlord activity accounted for 20.4% of all single-family residential market transactions, with investors involved in 11 of the 54 total sales.

The smallest investors dominated this activity, as the single-property tier was responsible for 9 of the 11 landlord-involved transactions (81.8%).

A wide pricing variance was observed between different investor tiers. Single-property landlords paid an average of $180,978, while a single purchase in the 3-5 property tier was recorded at $500,000.

Another transaction by a mid-size landlord (21-50 properties) registered at just $10,000, suggesting a distressed sale or a transfer between related parties.

The market shows little evidence of investor-to-investor trading, with only one purchase coming from another landlord. This indicates that investors are primarily acquiring properties from the traditional homeowner market.