U.S. real estate vacancies held constant in the second quarter of 2026 even as “zombie” foreclosures ticked higher in a number of regions, signifying a slow normalization in distressed-property activity, according to a brand-new report from ATTOM Data Solutions.
Throughout the nation’s 104.9 million residential properties, approximately 1.4 million homes– about 1.3%– were uninhabited in Q2, the same from both the previous quarter and the exact same duration a year previously. That stability recommends vacancy conditions stay broadly well balanced regardless of localized pockets of tension.
Foreclosure activity, however, edged higher. Of 245,376 homes in the foreclosure pipeline, 8,312– about 3.4%– were categorized as “zombie” properties, indicating owners deserted them before the foreclosure procedure concluded. That share rose somewhat from 3.3% in the previous quarter and matched year-ago levels.
“The increase in zombie foreclosures across the majority of states may reflect a foreclosure market that is slowly returning to more stabilized levels,” stated ATTOM CEO Rob Barber. He included that general job stays stable and zombies still represent a small portion of overall foreclosures.
Geographically, zombie foreclosure counts rose quarter-over-quarter in 38 states plus the District of Columbia, with the sharpest percentage gains in Georgia, North Carolina, Indiana, Iowa, and South Carolina. By contrast, Washington and New York were among the couple of states posting decreases.
Vacancy rates stayed structurally greatest in parts of the South and Midwest, led by Oklahoma and Kansas (both 2.4%), followed by Alabama, West Virginia, and Missouri. At the other end of the spectrum, tight real estate markets in New England and parts of the Mountain West continued to publish the lowest vacancy rates, including New Hampshire (0.3%), Vermont (0.4%), and New Jersey and Connecticut (0.5% each).
At the city level, distress was even more concentrated. A number of Midwestern cities posted double-digit zombie foreclosure rates, consisting of Cedar Rapids, Wichita, Youngstown, Cleveland, and Akron, underscoring persistent weakness in select legacy real estate markets.
Investor-owned residential or commercial properties showed a more noticable imbalance. Among 25.1 million homes owned by institutional investors, 3.5% were uninhabited– more than double the nationwide average. Vacancy rates in this segment were greatest in Indiana, Illinois, Kansas, Oklahoma, and Alabama, recommending unequal absorption of investor-held real estate stock across secondary markets.
At the neighborhood level, specific postal code showed extreme concentration of distressed, partially abandoned properties. In parts of Baltimore, Los Angeles, and Florida metros consisting of Tampa and Daytona Beach, more than one-third of homes in foreclosure were already uninhabited, with Baltimore’s 21217 ZIP code going beyond 50%.
Taken together, the data indicate a real estate market that stays broadly stable at the national level but progressively segmented, with investor-owned inventory and select regional markets carrying an out of proportion share of job and foreclosure-related tension.