Clay (KS) Investor Pulse Report (2026-Q1)

In Clay County, Kansas, investors hold a significant 27.7% of the single-family residential market, owning 788 out of 2,844 total properties. This high penetration rate indicates a mature rental market with a substantial non-owner-occupied presence.

The ownership structure is heavily skewed towards private individuals over corporate entities. Individual landlords own 593 properties, accounting for 75.3% of the investor-owned portfolio, while companies own the remaining 198 properties (25.1%).

A striking financial characteristic of this market is the complete absence of financing in landlord portfolios. All 788 investor-owned SFRs are held as cash properties, suggesting a fiscally conservative or debt-averse investor base.

The primary strategy for these holdings is clearly rental income. A total of 756 properties, or 95.9% of the investor portfolio, are currently rented. This underscores the market's role in providing rental housing rather than speculative flipping.

The number of individual landlords (779) far outweighs company landlords (91), reinforcing the 'mom-and-pop' character of the local real estate investing landscape.

Analysis of acquisition pricing and comparisons between landlords and traditional homeowners is not possible for Clay County due to a lack of recent transactional data. No purchases were recorded for either landlords or homeowners in the most recent quarter.

Consequently, it is not possible to determine if landlords are securing properties at a discount compared to other buyers or to track how any potential price gap has evolved over time.

Historical pricing data is also sparse. The period between 2020 and 2023 shows an average acquisition price of $83,443, but this is associated with zero distinct properties purchased, suggesting extremely low or non-existent activity even during the pandemic-era boom.

Without transaction volumes, trends in price appreciation or shifts in buying behavior cannot be established for this market.

The fourth quarter of 2025 was marked by a complete standstill in the Clay County real estate market, with zero SFR purchases recorded in total. Consequently, landlords acquired zero properties, accounting for 0.0% of market activity.

This lack of activity was universal across all investor sizes. Mom-and-pop landlords, who dominate ownership in the county, made no new acquisitions during the quarter.

Similarly, institutional investors, who have no existing holdings in the area, also recorded zero purchases.

The data indicates no new landlords entered the market in Q4, as the single-property (Tier 01) category saw no purchase activity.

This market freeze suggests a potential equilibrium where sellers are unwilling to meet buyer price expectations or a general lack of available inventory and transaction participants.

The investor landscape in Clay County is unequivocally dominated by small-scale operators. Mom-and-pop landlords, defined as those owning 1-10 properties, control a combined 91.8% of all investor-owned SFRs.

The most significant segment is the single-property landlord (Tier 01), who alone accounts for 525 properties, representing 63.4% of the total investor portfolio. This highlights the deeply fragmented and granular nature of ownership in the county.

Mid-size landlords (11-1000 properties) hold the remaining 8.2% of the portfolio, with no single tier in this category exceeding 6.0% of total ownership.

There is no presence of large-scale institutional investors in Clay County. The 1,000+ property tier (Tier 09) holds 0.0% of the market, reinforcing that this is a locally-driven market devoid of large corporate influence.

Pricing analysis by tier is unavailable due to the lack of recent transaction data across all ownership levels.

While individual investors dominate the Clay County market overall, a clear pattern emerges when analyzing ownership by portfolio size. Individuals own the vast majority of properties in the smallest tiers, including 89.0% of single-property portfolios and 84.9% of two-property portfolios.

A significant crossover point occurs in the 6-10 property tier (Tier 04). At this level, company ownership becomes dominant, accounting for 31 of the 44 properties, a 70.5% majority share. This suggests that as investors scale beyond five properties, they are more likely to operate under a formal business structure.

Even with this shift, individuals maintain a strong presence in the 3-5 property tier, holding 87 properties for a 73.7% share.

The data illustrates a clear lifecycle: individuals form the backbone of the entry-level and small-portfolio market, while corporate structures are favored for managing slightly larger, mid-sized portfolios.

Investor activity in Clay County is not evenly distributed, showing significant concentration in specific zip codes. The zip code 67432 is the epicenter of investor ownership by volume, with 523 landlord-owned SFRs.

While 67432 has the highest raw count, other areas exhibit much higher market penetration rates. Both zip codes 67410 and 67466 show an investor ownership rate of 50.0%, indicating that one in every two single-family homes in these areas is owned by a landlord.

Another notable area is 66937, where 41 investor-owned properties make up 31.8% of the local SFR market.

This geographic clustering reveals targeted investment strategies, focusing on specific neighborhoods or communities within the county rather than a broad, county-wide approach.

The contrast between high-count areas (like 67432) and high-percentage areas (like 67410) demonstrates different market dynamics at the sub-county level.

A comprehensive analysis of historical transaction trends for Clay County cannot be conducted as the necessary data is unavailable. This includes buys, sells, and pricing information across various timeframes.

As a result, key market dynamics such as the net position of landlords (whether they are accumulating or divesting properties) cannot be determined. The overall buy/sell ratio remains unknown.

The level of inter-landlord trading, a key indicator of market liquidity and sophistication, is also unquantifiable. There is no data on what percentage of transactions are between two landlord entities.

Similarly, it is not possible to compare average buy prices to average sell prices over time, which would provide insight into potential profit margins or market health.

The lack of this data, combined with zero recent activity, paints a picture of a historically low-velocity market.

In Q4 2025, the transaction market in Clay County came to a complete halt, with zero total transactions recorded. This means landlords were involved in 0.0% of market transactions.

This inactivity was consistent across all investor tiers. Mom-and-pop landlords, who constitute the vast majority of owners, did not purchase or sell any properties during this period.

Likewise, there was no activity from mid-size or institutional investors, confirming a market-wide pause.

Consequently, analysis of quarter-specific trends like average purchase price by tier or the prevalence of landlord-to-landlord sales is not possible.

The data points to a period of extreme illiquidity, where neither buyers nor sellers were executing deals in the single-family residential space.