GRAY, Tenn. – The undisputed highest concentration of single-family rentals in the Tri-Cities region is in Bristol, Va.’s 24201 zip code. Current data list 4,550 rentals. That’s better than half (66.7%) of all the households in that zip code. And all but 115 are occupied. 

Currently, almost one-in-three households in the region’s 40 zip codes are classified as non-owner-occupied investment properties. In all, there are 62,361 of them. The most current occupancy count shows all but 1,605 are occupied. That means the occupancy rate is 97.2%. It continues to be one of the highest rental occupancy rates in E. Tenn. 

 Bristol’s 37620 has the second-highest number of rentals (3,903). That’s 28.1% of the housing in that zip code. All but 191 are rented. 

Elizabethton’s 37643 has 3,481 rentals, which accounts for 30% of the zip code’s households, and only 45 are vacant.  

The latest count shows almost 15% of all single-family and condo rentals have out-of-state owners.  

Residential rentals have always been a favored investment for mom-and-pop investors. But the current market has attracted more out-of-state and institutional investors. Institutional investor sales are those made to non-lending entities that purchased at least 10 properties in a calendar year. During the last quarter, they accounted for almost 5% of all residential sales in the Kingsport-Bristol metro area. There were not enough sales in the Johnson City metro area to be included in the analysis. Kingsport-Bristol saw more investor activity because it had a large inventory of lower-priced homes that attracted investors and wholesalers.