Data / Rankings / Nonemployer businesses: real estate, rental and leasing / US states

US states by nonemployer businesses: real estate, rental and leasing

California had the highest nonemployer businesses: real estate, rental and leasing of 51 states in 2017, at 333,956. Alaska had the lowest, at 5,244. The median was 35,217 and the figure for the United States was 2.78 million. Source: the U.S. Census Bureau.

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Highest333,956California
Lowest5,244Alaska
Median35,21751 states
United States2,784,753History

Map of states, 2017

Alabama: 32,073 countAlaska: 5,244 countArizona: 63,149 countArkansas: 19,057 countCalifornia: 333,956 countColorado: 65,446 countConnecticut: 37,129 countDelaware: 9,984 countDistrict of Columbia: 5,722 countFlorida: 274,231 countGeorgia: 79,778 countHawaii: 12,829 countIdaho: 17,358 countIllinois: 95,155 countIndiana: 45,200 countIowa: 24,797 countKansas: 21,908 countKentucky: 29,740 countLouisiana: 36,390 countMaine: 12,194 countMaryland: 51,286 countMassachusetts: 59,945 countMichigan: 80,200 countMinnesota: 44,943 countMississippi: 16,684 countMissouri: 48,197 countMontana: 12,944 countNebraska: 16,290 countNevada: 30,256 countNew Hampshire: 13,310 countNew Jersey: 102,518 countNew Mexico: 12,532 countNew York: 208,260 countNorth Carolina: 81,182 countNorth Dakota: 7,735 countOhio: 85,577 countOklahoma: 27,380 countOregon: 34,772 countPennsylvania: 93,483 countRhode Island: 10,102 countSouth Carolina: 40,174 countSouth Dakota: 8,904 countTennessee: 45,028 countTexas: 205,242 countUtah: 35,217 countVermont: 5,794 countVirginia: 68,593 countWashington: 58,455 countWest Virginia: 8,665 countWisconsin: 41,624 countWyoming: 8,121 count
  • Under 11K
  • 11K to 18K
  • 18K to 35K
  • 35K to 49K
  • 49K to 81K
  • 81K and over
count, 2017. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Nonemployer Statistics, state and US files: establishments (ESTAB), real estate and rental and leasing (NAICS 53), all legal forms. Boundaries: U.S. Census Bureau cartographic boundary files.

All states, 2017

California: 333,956 countCalifornia333,956Florida: 274,231 countFlorida274,231New York: 208,260 countNew York208,260Texas: 205,242 countTexas205,242New Jersey: 102,518 countNew Jersey102,518Illinois: 95,155 countIllinois95,155Pennsylvania: 93,483 countPennsylvania93,483Ohio: 85,577 countOhio85,577North Carolina: 81,182 countNorth Carolina81,182Michigan: 80,200 countMichigan80,200Georgia: 79,778 countGeorgia79,778Virginia: 68,593 countVirginia68,593Colorado: 65,446 countColorado65,446Arizona: 63,149 countArizona63,149Massachusetts: 59,945 countMassachusetts59,945Washington: 58,455 countWashington58,455Maryland: 51,286 countMaryland51,286Missouri: 48,197 countMissouri48,197Indiana: 45,200 countIndiana45,200Tennessee: 45,028 countTennessee45,028Minnesota: 44,943 countMinnesota44,943Wisconsin: 41,624 countWisconsin41,624South Carolina: 40,174 countSouth Carolina40,174Connecticut: 37,129 countConnecticut37,129Louisiana: 36,390 countLouisiana36,390Utah: 35,217 countUtah35,217Oregon: 34,772 countOregon34,772Alabama: 32,073 countAlabama32,073Nevada: 30,256 countNevada30,256Kentucky: 29,740 countKentucky29,740Oklahoma: 27,380 countOklahoma27,380Iowa: 24,797 countIowa24,797Kansas: 21,908 countKansas21,908Arkansas: 19,057 countArkansas19,057Idaho: 17,358 countIdaho17,358Mississippi: 16,684 countMississippi16,684Nebraska: 16,290 countNebraska16,290New Hampshire: 13,310 countNew Hampshire13,310Montana: 12,944 countMontana12,944Hawaii: 12,829 countHawaii12,829New Mexico: 12,532 countNew Mexico12,532Maine: 12,194 countMaine12,194Rhode Island: 10,102 countRhode Island10,102Delaware: 9,984 countDelaware9,984South Dakota: 8,904 countSouth Dakota8,904West Virginia: 8,665 countWest Virginia8,665Wyoming: 8,121 countWyoming8,121North Dakota: 7,735 countNorth Dakota7,735Vermont: 5,794 countVermont5,794District of Columbia: 5,722 countDistrict of Columbia5,722Alaska: 5,244 countAlaska5,244California: 333,956 countCalifornia333,956Florida: 274,231 countFlorida274,231New York: 208,260 countNew York208,260Texas: 205,242 countTexas205,242New Jersey: 102,518 countNew Jersey102,518Illinois: 95,155 countIllinois95,155Pennsylvania: 93,483 countPennsylvania93,483Ohio: 85,577 countOhio85,577North Carolina: 81,182 countNorth Carolina81,182Michigan: 80,200 countMichigan80,200Georgia: 79,778 countGeorgia79,778Virginia: 68,593 countVirginia68,593Colorado: 65,446 countColorado65,446Arizona: 63,149 countArizona63,149Massachusetts: 59,945 countMassachusetts59,945Washington: 58,455 countWashington58,455Maryland: 51,286 countMaryland51,286Missouri: 48,197 countMissouri48,197Indiana: 45,200 countIndiana45,200Tennessee: 45,028 countTennessee45,028Minnesota: 44,943 countMinnesota44,943Wisconsin: 41,624 countWisconsin41,624South Carolina: 40,174 countSouth Carolina40,174Connecticut: 37,129 countConnecticut37,129Louisiana: 36,390 countLouisiana36,390Utah: 35,217 countUtah35,217Oregon: 34,772 countOregon34,772Alabama: 32,073 countAlabama32,073Nevada: 30,256 countNevada30,256Kentucky: 29,740 countKentucky29,740Oklahoma: 27,380 countOklahoma27,380Iowa: 24,797 countIowa24,797Kansas: 21,908 countKansas21,908Arkansas: 19,057 countArkansas19,057Idaho: 17,358 countIdaho17,358Mississippi: 16,684 countMississippi16,684Nebraska: 16,290 countNebraska16,290New Hampshire: 13,310 countNew Hampshire13,310Montana: 12,944 countMontana12,944Hawaii: 12,829 countHawaii12,829New Mexico: 12,532 countNew Mexico12,532Maine: 12,194 countMaine12,194Rhode Island: 10,102 countRhode Island10,102Delaware: 9,984 countDelaware9,984South Dakota: 8,904 countSouth Dakota8,904West Virginia: 8,665 countWest Virginia8,665Wyoming: 8,121 countWyoming8,121North Dakota: 7,735 countNorth Dakota7,735Vermont: 5,794 countVermont5,794District of Columbia: 5,722 countDistrict of Columbia5,722Alaska: 5,244 countAlaska5,244
count. Source: U.S. Census Bureau, Nonemployer Statistics, state and US files: establishments (ESTAB), real estate and rental and leasing (NAICS 53), all legal forms. Retrieved 2026-10-12.

Full ranking

RankStates2017
count		Change on 2016
1California333,956+1.9%
2Florida274,231+11.9%
3New York208,260+3.3%
4Texas205,242+8.7%
5New Jersey102,518+3.4%
6Illinois95,155+1.7%
7Pennsylvania93,483+3.3%
8Ohio85,577+2.1%
9North Carolina81,182+2.7%
10Michigan80,200+2.1%
11Georgia79,778+4.7%
12Virginia68,593+2.4%
13Colorado65,446+3.3%
14Arizona63,149+2.8%
15Massachusetts59,945+3.3%
16Washington58,455+2.8%
17Maryland51,286+2%
18Missouri48,197+2.8%
19Indiana45,200+2.1%
20Tennessee45,028+4.7%
21Minnesota44,943+1.1%
22Wisconsin41,624+1.5%
23South Carolina40,174+3.4%
24Connecticut37,129+1.4%
25Louisiana36,390+3.6%
26Utah35,217+3.4%
27Oregon34,772+1.7%
28Alabama32,073+3.4%
29Nevada30,256+3%
30Kentucky29,740+2.4%
31Oklahoma27,380+5.1%
32Iowa24,797+2.1%
33Kansas21,908+3%
34Arkansas19,057+3.5%
35Idaho17,358+2.7%
36Mississippi16,684+3.2%
37Nebraska16,290+3.5%
38New Hampshire13,310+2.7%
39Montana12,944+4.6%
40Hawaii12,829+2.7%
41New Mexico12,532+2%
42Maine12,194+3.3%
43Rhode Island10,102+2.1%
44Delaware9,984+3.9%
45South Dakota8,904+3.7%
46West Virginia8,665-0.7%
47Wyoming8,121+3.9%
48North Dakota7,735+3.1%
49Vermont5,794+3.3%
50District of Columbia5,722+4.3%
51Alaska5,244+2.1%

Other periods

About this ranking

Number of businesses without paid employees in real estate and rental and leasing (NAICS 53), from the U.S. Census Bureau Nonemployer Statistics.

Nonemployer Statistics: businesses with no paid employees that are subject to federal income tax, mostly the self-employed, counted from tax records, with receipts above small minimum amounts. Census says some years are not comparable with earlier ones, and they are marked as series breaks: 2018 in every sector (businesses were reclassified from their descriptions, which moved many out of other services), 2022 in every sector (new receipts cutoffs) and 2017 in utilities (the same reclassification). Most nonemployers are sole proprietors whose business may be a side activity. 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. Nonemployer Statistics, state and US files: establishments (ESTAB), real estate and rental and leasing (NAICS 53), all legal forms. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/nonemployer-statistics/datasets/2017/historical-datasets/. 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. (2019). Nonemployer Statistics, state and US files: establishments (ESTAB), real estate and rental and leasing (NAICS 53), all legal forms (US states by nonemployer businesses: real estate, rental and leasing, 2017) [Data set]. Retrieved October 12, 2026, from https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/nonemployer-statistics/datasets/2017/historical-datasets/

MLA 9

Nonemployer Statistics, state and US files: establishments (ESTAB), real estate and rental and leasing (NAICS 53), all legal forms, US states by nonemployer businesses: real estate, rental and leasing, 2017. U.S. Census Bureau, 27 June 2019, https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/nonemployer-statistics/datasets/2017/historical-datasets/. Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/nonemployer-businesses-real-estate/us-states?period=2017. Accessed 12 Oct. 2026.

Chicago (author-date)

U.S. Census Bureau. 2019. Nonemployer Statistics, state and US files: establishments (ESTAB), real estate and rental and leasing (NAICS 53), all legal forms. US states by nonemployer businesses: real estate, rental and leasing, 2017. Dataset. Accessed October 12, 2026. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/nonemployer-statistics/datasets/2017/historical-datasets/. Also distributed by Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/nonemployer-businesses-real-estate/us-states?period=2017.

Harvard

U.S. Census Bureau (2019) Nonemployer Statistics, state and US files: establishments (ESTAB), real estate and rental and leasing (NAICS 53), all legal forms, US states by nonemployer businesses: real estate, rental and leasing, 2017 [Dataset]. Available at: https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/nonemployer-statistics/datasets/2017/historical-datasets/, via Invokely: https://invokely.ai/rankings/nonemployer-businesses-real-estate/us-states?period=2017 (Accessed: 12 October 2026).

BibTeX
@misc{census_us_states_by_nonemployer_2017,
  author = {{U.S. Census Bureau}},
  title = {{Nonemployer Statistics, state and US files: establishments (ESTAB), real estate and rental and leasing (NAICS 53), all legal forms: US states by nonemployer businesses: real estate, rental and leasing, 2017}},
  year = {2019},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  url = {https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/nonemployer-statistics/datasets/2017/historical-datasets/},
  urldate = {2026-10-12},
  note = {Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/nonemployer-businesses-real-estate/us-states?period=2017. Publisher attribution: U.S. Census Bureau. Nonemployer Statistics, state and US files: establishments (ESTAB), real estate and rental and leasing (NAICS 53), all legal forms. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/nonemployer-statistics/datasets/2017/historical-datasets/. Retrieved 2026-10-12.},
}
RIS
TY  - DATA
AU  - U.S. Census Bureau
TI  - Nonemployer Statistics, state and US files: establishments (ESTAB), real estate and rental and leasing (NAICS 53), all legal forms: US states by nonemployer businesses: real estate, rental and leasing, 2017
PY  - 2019
DA  - 2019/06/27
PB  - U.S. Census Bureau
DB  - Invokely
UR  - https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/nonemployer-statistics/datasets/2017/historical-datasets/
L2  - https://invokely.ai/rankings/nonemployer-businesses-real-estate/us-states?period=2017
Y2  - 2026/10/12
N1  - Accessed via Invokely, https://invokely.ai/rankings/nonemployer-businesses-real-estate/us-states?period=2017.
N1  - Publisher attribution: U.S. Census Bureau. Nonemployer Statistics, state and US files: establishments (ESTAB), real estate and rental and leasing (NAICS 53), all legal forms. https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/nonemployer-statistics/datasets/2017/historical-datasets/. Retrieved 2026-10-12.
ER  -
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Questions

Which state has the highest nonemployer businesses: real estate, rental and leasing?

California, with 333,956 in 2017, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

Which state has the lowest nonemployer businesses: real estate, rental and leasing?

Alaska, with 5,244 in 2017.

Where does this ranking come from?

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

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