Between those four years, the number of renter households with an income of $1 million or more grew from 4,500 to 13,700. An additional 9,200 millionaire renters entered the market.
Now, 1 in 11 millionaires are renters, compared to 1 in 13 in 2019. While both millionaire renters and homeowners have surged over the last four years, renters are rising faster. The number of millionaire renters surged by 204%, outpacing the 169% growth in millionaire homeowners.
While New York and San Francisco remain hotspots for ultra-wealthy tenants, the report highlights that Southern metropolitan areas are becoming increasingly popular. Texas and Florida are among the new retirement-friendly locations.
“In fact, in Houston and Dallas the number of millionaire renters has increased the most between 2019 and 2023,” the report added. “This surge in renter millionaires can be traced to multiple factors, including robust stock market gains over the last five years, the expansion of the tech sector, the rise of remote work enabling location flexibility, and a growing preference for turnkey living solutions over the responsibilities of homeownership.”
Despite there being more millionaire renters flocking to Southern metro areas in the pandemic years, most millionaires still choose to own their homes. During the same four year period, millionaire homeowners climbed from 52,966 to 142,320 households. Although renter growth among millionaires signals a new trend nationally, some real estate experts say they haven’t personally observed a stronger interest in renting within their markets.
“I’ve yet to see any stronger interest in renting amongst wealthy individuals. In fact, I’ve seen increased ownership this year,” Josh Flagg, real estate agent and Million Dollar Listing Los Angeles star, tells Fortune.
“I can only speak to the markets in Florida, New York, and California, but ownership demand remains very strong in those regions.”
