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As of September 21, 2026, 14,097,610 U.S. properties are held in a trust. That's 9.1% of all parcels in the country, or roughly 1 in every 11. California alone accounts for 25.4% of them.
Most investors skip this segment and go straight to probate or tax-delinquent lists. These leads are different. The owner is usually older, often has equity, and has already planned for the property to change hands. Here's what the data shows and how to work it.
What Is a Trust-Owned Property?
A trust-owned property is real estate where the deed is in the name of a trust instead of a person. Most are revocable living trusts. The owner moves the home into the trust, controls it while alive, and names who takes over later. The main goal is to avoid probate.
A trust on the deed tells you three things before you make contact:
- The owner is more likely to be older.
- The owner is more likely to have equity. People rarely pay a lawyer to protect an underwater asset.
- The owner has already thought about what happens to the property next.
Trust-Owned Properties by State
DealMachine's property data flags trust ownership using ownership rights codes and owner-name patterns from county records in all 3,143 U.S. counties. We ran live counts for all 50 states plus D.C. on September 21, 2026. The last three columns show the share of each state's trust-owned properties that also carry that signal.
| State | Trust-Owned Properties | % of State Parcels | Senior Owner | Free & Clear | Absentee Owner |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| California | 3,587,461 | 29.9% | 57% | 36% | 35% |
| Florida | 991,500 | 9.2% | 58% | 56% | 46% |
| Arizona | 569,120 | 18.8% | 58% | 46% | 39% |
| Illinois | 562,983 | 9.6% | 54% | 62% | 45% |
| Ohio | 530,747 | 8.3% | 46% | 43% | 34% |
| Texas | 467,958 | 3.3% | 45% | 63% | 51% |
| Massachusetts | 427,844 | 16.8% | 48% | 37% | 40% |
| Michigan | 404,789 | 7.5% | 62% | 72% | 36% |
| Wisconsin | 347,305 | 10.1% | 54% | 74% | 51% |
| Iowa | 315,137 | 12.7% | 63% | 78% | 73% |
| U.S. Total | 14,097,610 | 9.1% | n/a | n/a | n/a |
Penetration Is the Real Story
Raw counts mostly track population. The better number is penetration: the share of a state's parcels held in a trust.
| Rank | State | Share of Parcels in a Trust |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | California | 29.9% |
| 2 | Hawaii | 29.4% |
| 3 | New Hampshire | 21.9% |
| 4 | Nevada | 21.8% |
| 5 | Arizona | 18.8% |
| 6 | Oregon | 18.7% |
| n/a | Texas | 3.3% |
California sits at 29.9%. Texas sits at 3.3%. That's a nine-fold gap between the two largest states. The likely reason is probate cost. California's probate is slow, and attorney and executor fees are set by statute as a percentage of the estate, so living trusts are standard for homeowners with equity. Texas probate is simpler, so fewer owners bother.
Three Patterns Worth Knowing
1. High-trust states cluster in the West. Hawaii, Nevada, Arizona, and Oregon all follow California. In Phoenix, almost one in five parcels carries a trust flag.
2. Iowa is the sleeper market. 73% of Iowa's trust-owned properties are absentee-owned, the highest rate of any state, and 78% are free and clear. Much of this is farmland and family property held for heirs who moved away. That's the core of a strong absentee owner list.
3. The senior share is flat everywhere. Between 45% and 63% of trust-owned properties have a senior owner in every state we measured. If you already work senior homeowner leads, the trust flag works as a portable filter in any market.
How to Buy a House Owned by a Trust
This isn't complicated. The person who negotiates and signs is the trustee, and who that is depends on the situation.
- The owner is alive: they are usually their own trustee. You deal with them like any other seller. They just sign as trustee.
- The owner has died: the successor trustee named in the trust has authority to sell. This is often an adult child, and they may live out of state.
- Irrevocable trust: an independent trustee may be in charge and has a duty to get a fair price. Expect them to ask for comps.
From the seller's side, selling a house in a trust is usually faster than an estate sale. There's no probate court and no waiting on a judge. Compare that with pre-probate leads, where a property can be tied up for months. At closing, the title company will usually ask for a certification of trust, a short document proving the trust exists and the trustee can sell. Have title confirm this early. Rules vary by state, so treat this as an overview, not legal advice.
How to Build the List in DealMachine
- Filter for trust-owned properties in your market.
- Add the senior owner filter.
- Add the free-and-clear filter. Our free-and-clear properties by state report shows how that signal varies.
- Narrow to your county or ZIP codes, then skip trace and start outreach.
Stacking all three filters still returns large lists: 834,523 properties in California, 348,196 in Florida, and 168,078 in Arizona. One caution: trust-owned properties are only modestly more likely to be paid off than average in most states. Filter for free and clear. Don't assume it.
Start With the List Most Investors Don't Have
There are 14.1 million trust-owned properties in the U.S., and most investors aren't looking at them. Filter trust-owned properties in DealMachine, stack senior owners and free and clear, and start working a segment with far less competition.
Frequently Asked Questions
Are trust owners motivated sellers?
Not automatically. A trust is a planning signal, not a distress signal. Motivation usually shows up when it's paired with other signals, like an absentee owner, a vacant home, or a recent death that puts a new trustee in charge.
Who signs when selling a trust-owned home?
The trustee. If the original owner has died, the person named in the trust document to take over signs on behalf of the trust.
How do I make an offer to a trustee?
Make it like any other offer, but list the trust as the seller (for example, "Jane Smith, Trustee of the Smith Family Trust"). Your title company will confirm the wording and the trustee's authority.
Which states have the most trust-owned leads?
By count, California leads with 3,587,461, followed by Florida (991,500) and Arizona (569,120). By share of parcels, California (29.9%) and Hawaii (29.4%) lead.