Business Insider

An "accidental landlord": the kind of person who gets into the rental business through circumstance, not because they consider themself a budding real estate mogul. This breed of landlord is born out of trade-offs and clear-eyed calculations. While there have always been accidental landlords, this Housing Ice Age — an era of middling home sales brought on by a steep rise in borrowing rates — is minting a new wave of reluctant rental owners.

Their ranks could grow with the uptick in return-to-office mandates. As employers like Amazon, AT&T, and the federal government herd workers back to their desks, some employees may have to ditch the far-flung homes they purchased during peak remote work. Property managers in places like Dallas and Atlanta, some of the prime destinations for pandemic-era movers, tell me they've recently seen a rise in inquiries from homeowners looking to get into the rental market.

While all signs point to a rise in the number of accidental landlords, there's no definitive count of their ranks. There are, however, some ways to get an approximation. A 2024 survey by the National Association of Realtors® found that 20% of repeat buyers kept their prior residence as an investment, rental, or vacation property.

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