How to Find Off-Market Real Estate Deals in 2026

Quick answer: An off-market real estate deal is a property that sells without ever being listed on the MLS, typically sourced through wholesalers, direct-to-seller marketing, investor networks, or sale-leaseback platforms. In 2026, small investors (fewer than 10 purchases a year) account for more than 62% of all investor home purchases, and off-market activity is concentrated in the $100,000 to $300,000 price range, according to the data below.

What Counts as an Off-Market Real Estate Deal?

An off-market deal is any property transaction that happens outside the Multiple Listing Service (MLS). The seller and buyer connect directly, through a wholesaler, an investor network, or a platform, rather than through a public listing that draws competing offers.

This matters for investors because MLS inventory is thin. Existing-home inventory sits at 4.6 months' supply nationwide, with a median price of $440,600 (NAR). Off-market channels are where a growing share of deal volume is moving instead.

Why Off-Market Deal Sourcing Is Growing in 2026

Three data points explain why more investors are looking off-market this year.

First, new listings are shrinking. New listings fell 1.7% year over year during the four weeks ending December 7, 2025, the biggest decline in more than two years, according to HousingWire.

Second, small investors are buying at record pace. Investors purchased roughly 534,000 homes in 2025, up 0.7% year over year, even as overall non-investor sales fell 2.1% (Realtor.com, via HousingWire). Small investors, defined as those with fewer than 10 purchases, made up about 63% of all investor buys and added roughly 53,000 net homes to their holdings.

Third, that trend accelerated into 2026. Realtor.com's mid-year update found that 10.8% of homes sold in the second quarter were bought by investors, and small investors accounted for more than 62.5% of those purchases (HousingWire).

Small investors also buy at a lower price point: a median of $330,000, compared with the overall market median of $440,000. That puts them in direct competition with first-time buyers for the same entry-level inventory, and it is exactly the segment where off-market sourcing gives you an edge.

How Much Do Wholesalers Charge for Off-Market Deals?

The national average wholesale assignment fee is $13,000, based on a survey of more than 1,000 professional wholesalers by Real Estate Bees. Fees vary widely by location:

• North Carolina and Georgia have the highest state averages, at $22,000
• Arizona has the lowest state average, at $5,000
• St. Louis, Missouri has the highest average of any city, at $25,000
• Sierra Vista, Arizona has the lowest average of any city, at $5,000

Assignment fees are typically calculated as a percentage of the spread between the contract price and the after-repair value, commonly in the 10% to 25% range depending on the wholesaler and the deal. That fee is the cost of someone else finding, negotiating, and contracting the deal before you ever see it. It is not a markup you have to accept. It is a number you should understand before you pay it.

Where Do Investors Find Off-Market Deals?

Retail investors typically pull from a mix of these channels, according to HousingWire's coverage of the off-market ecosystem:

• Wholesaler networks and platforms such as BiggerPockets
• Direct-to-consumer buyers such as HomeVestors and New Western
• Marketplace platforms such as Roofstock
• Personal networks, including local agents with off-market listing relationships
• Sale-leaseback platforms, which source directly from homeowners seeking liquidity rather than a move

Each channel has a different cost structure. Wholesalers charge an assignment fee on top of the purchase price. Sale-leaseback platforms connect you directly with a motivated seller who is not shopping the deal to other wholesalers first, which is where the cost advantage over a marked-up assignment comes from.

🦍 Joe's read: Everyone wants the deal nobody else has found. The truth is simpler. Most off-market inventory just needs a channel that reaches the seller before a wholesaler does. Fewer hands on the deal usually means a cleaner spread for you.

How to Evaluate an Off-Market Deal Before You Buy

Use this checklist before you sign anything:

1. Confirm who actually owns the property and who has authority to sell it.
2. Ask for the assignor's contract price, not just the price they are asking you to pay.
3. Run your own after-repair value and repair estimate. Do not rely on the wholesaler's numbers.
4. Check how many times the contract has been assigned. Multiple assignments usually mean multiple markups stacked on top of each other.
5. Compare the total cost (purchase price plus assignment fee) against comparable MLS listings in the area. If it is not cheaper than the front door, the "off-market" label is not doing any work for you.

FAQ: Off-Market Real Estate Deals

What is the difference between an off-market deal and a wholesale deal?
All wholesale deals are off-market, but not all off-market deals are wholesale deals. A wholesale deal involves an assignor who contracts a property and sells the contract to you for a fee. An off-market deal more broadly is any transaction that bypasses the MLS, including sale-leaseback purchases and direct-to-seller deals with no assignor involved.

How much should I expect to pay in assignment fees?
The national average is $13,000, according to a 2026 survey of more than 1,000 wholesalers by Real Estate Bees. Location matters: state averages range from $5,000 in Arizona to $22,000 in North Carolina and Georgia.

Why are small investors dominating off-market purchases in 2026?
Small investors made up more than 62% of investor home purchases in Q2 2026, largely because entry-level inventory (median $330,000) is where MLS competition is fiercest and off-market sourcing offers the clearest advantage.

Is a sale-leaseback considered an off-market deal?
Yes. A sale-leaseback never touches the MLS. The seller transacts directly with the buyer and stays in the home as a tenant, which means no wholesaler, no assignment fee, and a property that is occupied from day one.

The Bottom Line

Off-market deal flow in 2026 is real, growing, and measurable: 10.8% of Q2 home sales went to investors, and small investors captured most of that share. Wholesalers charge an average of $13,000 for access to that inventory. Sale-leaseback sourcing gives you a path to the same off-market pool of sellers without that markup, and with a tenant already in place.