How Seller Financing Held Its Ground in a Shifting Housing Market
Each year, we analyze seller financing activity across the United States as part of our annual report series, published for over 15 years!
The 2025 numbers are in — and they continue to show that owner financing remains a meaningful and consistent part of the market.
Key Seller Financing Trends in 2025
- $29.5 Billion in seller-financed notes were created in 2025
- Seller financing volume declined 2.6% from the $30.3 Billion in 2024
- 87,212 Transactions were owner financed, down slightly from 89,890 in 2024
- The market produced $137.8 billion in notes over the past 5 years (2021-2025), a 4.5% increase from 131.9 billion from the prior trailing 5 years (2020-2024).
- Residential properties accounted for 62% of transactions
- Approximately 86% of sellers created just one note in a 12-month period
- 66% of transactions were created in just 10 states
- The top 5 states remained Texas, Florida, California, North Carolina, and Georgia
- The average LTV increased slightly across all property types:
- 76% LTV for Residential
- 72% LTV for Commercial
- 73% LTV for Land
- Seller financing held its position despite declining home sales
A Deeper Look: Home Sales Dropped Again With Seller Financing Showing Resilience
The broader real estate market continued to face challenges in 2025.
Existing home sales declined again, reaching 30-year lows not seen since 1995. (Source: National Association of Realtors Jan 14, 2026). Elevated interest rates, affordability constraints, and tighter lending standards continued to limit traditional financing options for many buyers.
While seller financing largely tracked the slowdown in 2025, the combined volume of the past 5 years actually increased, maintaining its role as an alternative financing solution.
When traditional financing becomes more difficult, seller financing often becomes more relevant.
Seller Financing Usage Over Time
Looking at long-term trends, seller financing activity has remained relatively consistent. While there are year-to-year fluctuations, the number of seller-financed notes created annually has stayed within a stable range over the past decade.
The 2025 numbers reflect a slight pullback, but not a structural change in the market.
| Year | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
| Count | 97,089 | 89,779 | 91,605 | 86,155 | 84,007 | 89,678 | 83,647 | 89,773 | 89,890 | 87,212 |
| Change | -8.3% | -7.5% | +2% | -5.95% | -2.49% | +6.75% | -6.73% | +7.32% | +0.13% | -2.98% |
Seller Financing by Dollar Amount
The Top States – Which States Dominated in 2025
The Top 5 remained unchanged, with Texas, Florida, California, North Carolina, and Georgia leading the way and continuing to be producing states. In total, the Top 10 States for Selling Financing were responsible for 66% of the Notes creates in 2025. New to the top 10 this year was Ohio, with a 1% increase from 2024 to break into the 10th spot.
| State | 2024 Count | 2025 Count | Percentage |
| Texas | 22,584 | 21,508 | 24.7% |
| Florida | 8,088 | 7,835 | 9.0% |
| California | 7,083 | 6,702 | 7.7% |
| North Carolina | 4,362 | 4,251 | 4.9% |
| Georgia | 3,767 | 3,550 | 4.1% |
| Arizona | 3,757 | 3,455 | 4.0% |
| Washington | 2,955 | 2,751 | 3.2% |
| New York | 2,875 | 2,614 | 3.0% |
| Pennsylvania | 2,341 | 2,321 | 2.7% |
| Ohio | 1,753 | 2,255 | 2.6% |
| Top 10 | 60,167* | 57,242 | 65.6% |
| All 50 States | 89,890 | 87,212 |
Wondering how the remaining 40 states compared? Download the full report for a state by state listing.
Carry Back Notes by Property Type – Finding Opportunity
Not surprising to active investors — residential notes continue to dominate, making up over 60% of transactions created by property type. With that said, there are still plenty of opportunities in commercial and land notes.
- Residential properties accounted for approximately 62% of transactions and $14.6 billion in volume
- Commercial properties represented about 17% of transactions, totaling $9.6 billion
- Land transactions also made up roughly 17% of activity, with $4.34 billion in volume
- The remaining 4% fell into an unknown category where the property type was not readily identified in the county data.
| 2021 | % | 2022 | % | 2023 | % | 2024 | % | 2025 | % | |
| Residential | 54,443 | 61% | 52,801 | 63% | 56,352 | 63% | 56,744 | 63% | 53,644 | 62% |
| Commercial | 14,794 | 16% | 13,415 | 16% | 15,142 | 17% | 14,876 | 17% | 14,506 | 17% |
| Land | 16,921 | 19% | 14,333 | 17% | 14,418 | 16% | 14,842 | 17% | 15,166 | 17% |
| Unknown | 3,520 | 4% | 3,098 | 4% | 3,861 | 4% | 3,428 | 4% | 3,896 | 4% |
| 89,678 | 83,647 | 89,773 | 89,890 | 87,212 |
Average Note Amounts and Loan-to-Value Ratios For Seller Financing
Average note sizes remained strong in 2025.
- Residential notes averaged approximately $272,856 with an average 76% LTV
- Commercial notes averaged approximately $661,996 with an average 72% LTV
- Land notes averaged approximately $286,178 with an average 73% LTV
Loan-to-value ratios increased last year, indicating that sellers were carrying a larger portion of the financing to complete transactions. This is a trend to watch for in 2026, making adjustments to Investment-to-Value as needed when pricing notes based on current property values.
| 2022 | LTV% | 2023 | LTV% | 2024 | LTV% | 2025 | LTV% | |
| Residential | $225,857 | 75% | $248,523 | 74% | $271,655 | 73% | $272,856 | 76% |
| Commercial | $432,590 | 66% | $613,077 | 72% | $669,046 | 69% | $661,996 | 72% |
| Land | $247,735 | 68% | $247,536 | 82% | $283,887 | 69% | $286,178 | 73% |
Comparing Mom & Pop Sellers to Seller Financing Pros
One of the defining characteristics of the seller financing market is who is creating the notes. In 2025:
- Approximately 86% of sellers created just one note in a 12-month period
- About 14% of sellers created two or more notes
This has remained consistent over time.
Most seller-financed notes are created by individual property sellers, not professional lenders.
| 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 | |
| Note Count Where Seller Created 1 Note* | 75,279 | 70,807 | 76,780 | 77,754 | 74,761 |
| (% of Notes Created by Count) | 84% | 85% | 86% | 86% | 86% |
| Note Count from Sellers Creating More Than 1 Note* | 14,399 | 12,840 | 12,993 | 12,136 | 12,451 |
| Totals | 89,678 | 83,647 | 89,773 | 89,890 | 87,212 |
Note Creators by Entity
Looking at the structure of note creators:
- 55% of notes were created by individuals
- 34% by corporate entities
- 11% by trusts
Seller financing remains a decentralized market, which continues to create variability in terms and structure.
Notes Created by Individual, Corporate Entity or Trust
Thanks to Advanced Seller Data Services, a mailing list provider for providing these 2025 stats. They are based on 2,323 counties reporting, balances of $30,000 or higher, on 1st position or wrap/AITD notes.
What Is Happening for Owner Financing in 2026?
As we look ahead, several factors are likely to influence the seller financing market:
- Interest rates and inflation trends
- Continued affordability challenges for buyers
- Inventory levels and days on market
- Rising tax and insurance costs
- Ongoing difficulty in obtaining traditional financing
- Declining property values in select markets
- Increasing delinquency trends
Download the Full 2025 Seller Financing Report
This article highlights key trends, but the full report provides a deeper look at the data. The downloadable report includes:
- Detailed data for all 50 states
- Additional charts and breakdowns
- Expanded data sets for further analysis
If you want to explore the numbers in more detail, you can download the full report here:
Seller Financing 2025 FAQs
What is the total seller financing volume in 2025?
Seller financing totaled approximately $29.5 billion in 2025.
How many seller-financed notes were created in 2025?
There were 87,212 seller-financed transactions recorded in 2025.
Is seller financing increasing or decreasing?
Seller financing declined slightly in 2025 but largely tracked the broader housing market slowdown.
What types of properties use seller financing most often?
Residential properties account for approximately 62% of seller-financed transactions.
Which states have the most seller financing activity?
Texas, Florida, California, North Carolina, and Georgia are the leading states.
Who typically creates seller-financed notes?
Most notes are created by individual property sellers, with about 86% creating only one note per year.
What are your thoughts on this year’s seller financing statistics? Leave your comments below.
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