Business
'Accidental landlords' rise to three-year high as market shifts
A near-record (and rising) share of homeowners are turning their unsold properties into rentals1, according to new research from Zillow®. Properties owned by these "accidental landlords" account for more of the listed rental stock than at any time since 2022 — and the trend may not have peaked yet.
About this update from Zillow Group, Inc.
[{"type":"text","content":"Unsold listings make up a growing share of the rental market — the second-largest on record and trending upward ","length":111,"tagName":"p","attribs":{}},{"type":"list","items":[{"val":[{"type":"text","content":"2.3% of homes listed for rent on Zillow were recently listed for sale, according to a new Zillow analysis. Only once in Zillow's nearly six-year record has the share of "accidental landlords" been higher nationwide — in November 2022.","length":248,"tagName":"p"}]},{"val":[{"type":"text","content":"Texas and Florida markets, along with Denver, Portland and Nashville, have the largest share of these accidental-landlord properties.","length":133,"tagName":"p"}]},{"val":[{"type":"text","content":"Would-be sellers resorting to renting instead of accepting a serious price cut indicates these homeowners don't need to liquidate distressed properties.","length":156,"tagName":"p"}]}],"tagName":"ul","bulletedList":true,"length":537,"olType":false},{"type":"text","content":"SEATTLE, March 11, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- A near-record (and rising) share of homeowners are turning their unsold properties into rentals1, according to new research from Zillow®. Properties owned by these "accidental landlords" account for more of the listed rental stock than at any time since 2022 — and the trend may not have peaked yet.","length":349,"tagName":"p"},{"type":"image","alt":"2.3% of homes listed for rent on Zillow were recently listed for sale, according to a new Zillow analysis. Texas and Florida markets, along with Denver, Portland and Nashville, have the largest share of these accidental-landlord properties.","displaySize":"","headline":null,"caption":"2.3% of homes listed for rent on Zillow were recently listed for sale, according to a new Zillow analysis. Texas and Florida markets, along with Denver, Portland and Nashville, have the largest share of these accidental-landlord properties.","className":"","disableSlideshowImg":false,"size":{"original":{"width":400,"height":213,"url":"https://media.zenfs.com/en/prnewswire.com/4e628a28b88bcab622a248e4be49e590"},"resized":{"url":"https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/6P9yMdrWcv5J6KrNBRaPNQ--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTcwNTtoPTM3NTtjZj13ZWJw/https://media.zenfs.com/en/prnewswire.com/4e628a28b88bcab622a248e4be49e590","width":400,"height":213}},"href":"https://mma.prnewswire.com...