While the U.S. has millions of homes that are used only seasonally or occasionally, vacation housing is far more concentrated in some communities than others. In several prominent resort markets, vacation homes account for more than half of the entire housing stock. At the same time, housing affordability remains a challenge for renters in many communities, with more than half of renters in some metros spending an excessive share of their income on housing. Researchers at SellMyTimeshareNow analyzed U.S. Census Bureau data to identify the states and communities where vacation homes make up the largest share of the housing supply. The findings reveal a stark contrast between the country’s largest vacation-home markets by volume and the smaller destinations where seasonal properties make up an outsized share of local housing.

The pandemic-era vacation-home boom appears to be unraveling. A new analysis found that U.S. vacation-home purchases financed with a mortgage fell 65.8% between 2021 and 2025, dropping from 257,549 purchases to just 88,158 nationwide. Because vacation homes are typically discretionary purchases, the category can also act as a leading indicator for broader economic conditions. Sharp declines in second-home buying may reflect changing consumer confidence, affordability pressures, and reduced financial flexibility—even among higher-income households that traditionally drive resort and leisure real estate markets. The report examines where second-home demand has declined the most across the country, ranking states and metro areas based on the change in vacation-home mortgage originations since the height of the pandemic housing boom.