Have hordes of investors – from mom and pops to Wall Street giants – gobbled up single-family residences across the state to make them rentals? Yes, California has the most single-family rentals in the nation at 2.1 million units, or 15% of the US total. But between 2017 and 2022, the number of California’s single-family rentals dropped by 81,548 units, according to Census data. This dip in rental homes is a sharp contrast to owners who occupy their single-family residences. In 2017, 25% of California’s single-family residences had renters vs. 18% across the US.
