6.3% of Richmond homes were sold to institutional investors in 2024
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Last year, 6.3% of all homes sold the Richmond area were bought by institutional investors, per a new ATTOM report.
The big picture: Nationwide, institutional investors — any non-lending group that purchased at least 10 properties in a calendar year — have backed off the last three years as housing affordability has plummeted, the report shows.
Yes, but: Richmond's rate is up slightly from 6.2% in 2023.
Context: Investors bet on growth. They want to see strong population and job growth, solid rental yields, landlord-friendly regulations, affordability, and long-term appreciation potential, ATTOM CEO Rob Barber tells Axios.
By the numbers: Statewide, the share of homes purchased by investors shrank, dropping to 5.7% from 5.8% in 2023.
- In Virginia's metro areas, investor home sales purchases grew in Roanoke (6.8% of sales, up from 5.9%) and Richmond.
- The dropped in NoVa and the entire DMV (4.7%, down from 5%), Virginia Beach (6.8% down from 6.9%) and Bristol (4.9% down from 6.2%).
Zoom out: Last year, several metro areas with a population of at least 200,000 attracted high investor interest. Each of these cities had roughly double (or more) the investor activity compared to the national average of 6.3%:
- Memphis, Tennessee (15.1% of sales)
- Huntsville, Alabama (12.5%)
- Birmingham, Alabama (12.4%)
- Fayetteville, North Carolina (11.1%)
- Columbus, Georgia (11.1%)
The bottom line: It's still a rough homebuying market out there for locals trying to do so.