Data / Rankings / Employer establishments: real estate, rental and leasing / US states

US states by employer establishments: real estate, rental and leasing

California had the highest employer establishments: real estate, rental and leasing of 51 states in 2021, at 63,632. Vermont had the lowest, at 801. The median was 5,437 and the figure for the United States was 456,226. Source: the U.S. Census Bureau.

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Highest63,632California
Lowest801Vermont
Median5,43751 states
United States456,226History

Map of states, 2021

Alabama: 4,940 countAlaska: 1,092 countArizona: 12,239 countArkansas: 3,488 countCalifornia: 63,632 countColorado: 14,284 countConnecticut: 3,356 countDelaware: 1,412 countDistrict of Columbia: 1,475 countFlorida: 45,269 countGeorgia: 14,777 countHawaii: 2,040 countIdaho: 3,599 countIllinois: 14,036 countIndiana: 7,320 countIowa: 3,518 countKansas: 3,571 countKentucky: 4,202 countLouisiana: 5,437 countMaine: 2,045 countMaryland: 7,470 countMassachusetts: 8,119 countMichigan: 9,035 countMinnesota: 7,796 countMississippi: 2,510 countMissouri: 7,200 countMontana: 2,403 countNebraska: 2,661 countNevada: 5,339 countNew Hampshire: 1,514 countNew Jersey: 10,079 countNew Mexico: 2,442 countNew York: 33,874 countNorth Carolina: 14,743 countNorth Dakota: 1,143 countOhio: 11,501 countOklahoma: 4,597 countOregon: 7,269 countPennsylvania: 11,385 countRhode Island: 1,204 countSouth Carolina: 7,225 countSouth Dakota: 1,281 countTennessee: 6,777 countTexas: 36,585 countUtah: 6,702 countVermont: 801 countVirginia: 11,198 countWashington: 13,485 countWest Virginia: 1,360 countWisconsin: 5,478 countWyoming: 1,318 count
  • Under 1,500
  • 1,500 to 3,400
  • 3,400 to 5,400
  • 5,400 to 7,600
  • 7,600 to 13K
  • 13K and over
count, 2021. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, County Business Patterns, state and US files: establishments (EST), real estate and rental and leasing (NAICS 53), all legal forms. Boundaries: U.S. Census Bureau cartographic boundary files.

All states, 2021

California: 63,632 countCalifornia63,632Florida: 45,269 countFlorida45,269Texas: 36,585 countTexas36,585New York: 33,874 countNew York33,874Georgia: 14,777 countGeorgia14,777North Carolina: 14,743 countNorth Carolina14,743Colorado: 14,284 countColorado14,284Illinois: 14,036 countIllinois14,036Washington: 13,485 countWashington13,485Arizona: 12,239 countArizona12,239Ohio: 11,501 countOhio11,501Pennsylvania: 11,385 countPennsylvania11,385Virginia: 11,198 countVirginia11,198New Jersey: 10,079 countNew Jersey10,079Michigan: 9,035 countMichigan9,035Massachusetts: 8,119 countMassachusetts8,119Minnesota: 7,796 countMinnesota7,796Maryland: 7,470 countMaryland7,470Indiana: 7,320 countIndiana7,320Oregon: 7,269 countOregon7,269South Carolina: 7,225 countSouth Carolina7,225Missouri: 7,200 countMissouri7,200Tennessee: 6,777 countTennessee6,777Utah: 6,702 countUtah6,702Wisconsin: 5,478 countWisconsin5,478Louisiana: 5,437 countLouisiana5,437Nevada: 5,339 countNevada5,339Alabama: 4,940 countAlabama4,940Oklahoma: 4,597 countOklahoma4,597Kentucky: 4,202 countKentucky4,202Idaho: 3,599 countIdaho3,599Kansas: 3,571 countKansas3,571Iowa: 3,518 countIowa3,518Arkansas: 3,488 countArkansas3,488Connecticut: 3,356 countConnecticut3,356Nebraska: 2,661 countNebraska2,661Mississippi: 2,510 countMississippi2,510New Mexico: 2,442 countNew Mexico2,442Montana: 2,403 countMontana2,403Maine: 2,045 countMaine2,045Hawaii: 2,040 countHawaii2,040New Hampshire: 1,514 countNew Hampshire1,514District of Columbia: 1,475 countDistrict of Columbia1,475Delaware: 1,412 countDelaware1,412West Virginia: 1,360 countWest Virginia1,360Wyoming: 1,318 countWyoming1,318South Dakota: 1,281 countSouth Dakota1,281Rhode Island: 1,204 countRhode Island1,204North Dakota: 1,143 countNorth Dakota1,143Alaska: 1,092 countAlaska1,092Vermont: 801 countVermont801California: 63,632 countCalifornia63,632Florida: 45,269 countFlorida45,269Texas: 36,585 countTexas36,585New York: 33,874 countNew York33,874Georgia: 14,777 countGeorgia14,777North Carolina: 14,743 countNorth Carolina14,743Colorado: 14,284 countColorado14,284Illinois: 14,036 countIllinois14,036Washington: 13,485 countWashington13,485Arizona: 12,239 countArizona12,239Ohio: 11,501 countOhio11,501Pennsylvania: 11,385 countPennsylvania11,385Virginia: 11,198 countVirginia11,198New Jersey: 10,079 countNew Jersey10,079Michigan: 9,035 countMichigan9,035Massachusetts: 8,119 countMassachusetts8,119Minnesota: 7,796 countMinnesota7,796Maryland: 7,470 countMaryland7,470Indiana: 7,320 countIndiana7,320Oregon: 7,269 countOregon7,269South Carolina: 7,225 countSouth Carolina7,225Missouri: 7,200 countMissouri7,200Tennessee: 6,777 countTennessee6,777Utah: 6,702 countUtah6,702Wisconsin: 5,478 countWisconsin5,478Louisiana: 5,437 countLouisiana5,437Nevada: 5,339 countNevada5,339Alabama: 4,940 countAlabama4,940Oklahoma: 4,597 countOklahoma4,597Kentucky: 4,202 countKentucky4,202Idaho: 3,599 countIdaho3,599Kansas: 3,571 countKansas3,571Iowa: 3,518 countIowa3,518Arkansas: 3,488 countArkansas3,488Connecticut: 3,356 countConnecticut3,356Nebraska: 2,661 countNebraska2,661Mississippi: 2,510 countMississippi2,510New Mexico: 2,442 countNew Mexico2,442Montana: 2,403 countMontana2,403Maine: 2,045 countMaine2,045Hawaii: 2,040 countHawaii2,040New Hampshire: 1,514 countNew Hampshire1,514District of Columbia: 1,475 countDistrict of Columbia1,475Delaware: 1,412 countDelaware1,412West Virginia: 1,360 countWest Virginia1,360Wyoming: 1,318 countWyoming1,318South Dakota: 1,281 countSouth Dakota1,281Rhode Island: 1,204 countRhode Island1,204North Dakota: 1,143 countNorth Dakota1,143Alaska: 1,092 countAlaska1,092Vermont: 801 countVermont801
count. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, County Business Patterns, state and US files: establishments (EST), real estate and rental and leasing (NAICS 53), all legal forms. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Full ranking

RankStates2021
count		Change on 2020
1California63,632+3%
2Florida45,269+8.1%
3Texas36,585+6.8%
4New York33,874-0.2%
5Georgia14,777+6.2%
6North Carolina14,743+6.1%
7Colorado14,284+5.8%
8Illinois14,036+1.1%
9Washington13,485+4.7%
10Arizona12,239+7.7%
11Ohio11,501+3.6%
12Pennsylvania11,385+3%
13Virginia11,198+4.1%
14New Jersey10,079+1.1%
15Michigan9,035+3%
16Massachusetts8,119+0.8%
17Minnesota7,796+4.5%
18Maryland7,470+3.7%
19Indiana7,320+4.2%
20Oregon7,269+3.1%
21South Carolina7,225+8.2%
22Missouri7,200+3.8%
23Tennessee6,777+4.3%
24Utah6,702+5.9%
25Wisconsin5,478+4.4%
26Louisiana5,437+3.7%
27Nevada5,339+3.2%
28Alabama4,940+5.2%
29Oklahoma4,597+1.8%
30Kentucky4,202+3.9%
31Idaho3,599+11.4%
32Kansas3,571+2%
33Iowa3,518+4.1%
34Arkansas3,488+3.3%
35Connecticut3,356-0.8%
36Nebraska2,661+6.4%
37Mississippi2,510+3.7%
38New Mexico2,442+1.5%
39Montana2,403+6.3%
40Maine2,045+5.3%
41Hawaii2,040+1.4%
42New Hampshire1,514+1.1%
43District of Columbia1,475+0.3%
44Delaware1,412+3.9%
45West Virginia1,360+0.1%
46Wyoming1,318+5.1%
47South Dakota1,281+7.3%
48Rhode Island1,204+3.1%
49North Dakota1,143+2.3%
50Alaska1,092+8.1%
51Vermont801+2.4%

Other periods

About this ranking

Number of establishments with paid employees in real estate and rental and leasing (NAICS 53), from the U.S. Census Bureau County Business Patterns.

County Business Patterns: establishments (single physical locations, not firms) with paid employees during the pay period including 12 March. Excludes the self-employed and businesses without employees (nonemployer_establishments_*), government employers, crop and animal production, rail transportation, the Postal Service and private households. Establishment counts are not perturbed; the noise Census adds since 2017 applies to employment and payroll, which are not served here. Published about 18 months after the reference year.

Every value in the ranking comes from the same publisher and the same period, so the states are compared on one definition. Equal values share a rank.

How to cite

U.S. Census Bureau. County Business Patterns, state and US files: establishments (EST), real estate and rental and leasing (NAICS 53), all legal forms. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/cbp/datasets/2021/. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Citation styles

The publisher is the author. Invokely is named only as the place the figures were read, where a style asks for it.

APA 7

U.S. Census Bureau. (2023). County Business Patterns, state and US files: establishments (EST), real estate and rental and leasing (NAICS 53), all legal forms (US states by employer establishments: real estate, rental and leasing, 2021) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/cbp/datasets/2021/

MLA 9

County Business Patterns, state and US files: establishments (EST), real estate and rental and leasing (NAICS 53), all legal forms, US states by employer establishments: real estate, rental and leasing, 2021. U.S. Census Bureau, 27 Apr. 2023, https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/cbp/datasets/2021/. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/employer-establishments-real-estate/us-states?period=2021. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

U.S. Census Bureau. 2023. County Business Patterns, state and US files: establishments (EST), real estate and rental and leasing (NAICS 53), all legal forms. US states by employer establishments: real estate, rental and leasing, 2021. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/cbp/datasets/2021/. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/employer-establishments-real-estate/us-states?period=2021.

Harvard

U.S. Census Bureau (2023) County Business Patterns, state and US files: establishments (EST), real estate and rental and leasing (NAICS 53), all legal forms, US states by employer establishments: real estate, rental and leasing, 2021 [Dataset]. Available at: https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/cbp/datasets/2021/, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/employer-establishments-real-estate/us-states?period=2021 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{census_us_states_by_employer_2021,
  author = {{U.S. Census Bureau}},
  title = {{County Business Patterns, state and US files: establishments (EST), real estate and rental and leasing (NAICS 53), all legal forms: US states by employer establishments: real estate, rental and leasing, 2021}},
  year = {2023},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/cbp/datasets/2021/},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/employer-establishments-real-estate/us-states?period=2021. Publisher attribution: U.S. Census Bureau. County Business Patterns, state and US files: establishments (EST), real estate and rental and leasing (NAICS 53), all legal forms. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/cbp/datasets/2021/. Retrieved 2026-10-12.},
}
RIS
TY  - DATA
AU  - U.S. Census Bureau
TI  - County Business Patterns, state and US files: establishments (EST), real estate and rental and leasing (NAICS 53), all legal forms: US states by employer establishments: real estate, rental and leasing, 2021
PY  - 2023
DA  - 2023/04/27
PB  - U.S. Census Bureau
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/cbp/datasets/2021/
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/employer-establishments-real-estate/us-states?period=2021
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/employer-establishments-real-estate/us-states?period=2021.
N1  - Publisher attribution: U.S. Census Bureau. County Business Patterns, state and US files: establishments (EST), real estate and rental and leasing (NAICS 53), all legal forms. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/cbp/datasets/2021/. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  -
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Questions

Which state has the highest employer establishments: real estate, rental and leasing?

California, with 63,632 in 2021, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Which state has the lowest employer establishments: real estate, rental and leasing?

Vermont, with 801 in 2021.

Where does this ranking come from?

Every value comes from one source and one period, so the places are comparable: U.S. Census Bureau, County Business Patterns, state and US files: establishments (EST), real estate and rental and leasing (NAICS 53), all legal forms. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

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