Real estate · County · Texas
Real estate businesses in Harris County, TX
Competitor counts, household spending and official business counts for real estate businesses in Harris County, TX, set against other counties and the U.S.
Groundwork market score · out of 100
Score 42 out of 100: Lower middle
Ranked #1,537 of 2,229 scored counties
#120 of 156 scored counties in Texas
- Listings
- 6,947
- 500 chain locations (7%)
- Official establishments
- 3,745
- +15.8% since 2019
- Household spending a year
- $27.4B
- On rent and homeowner costs · $15,567 a household
- Housing spending per listing (U.S. = 100)
- 91
- 9% below the U.S.
- Listings per 10k households
- 39.5
- 3% above the U.S.
- Population, 2025
- 5,045,026
- +6.6% since 2020
See the real estate businesses around any address in Harris County
The site report maps the real estate businesses on map listings near the address, by name and distance, and sizes the households and spending around it. Or open the report at the center of Harris County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardSurvey estimates 2020–2024 · population estimates 2025 · official business counts 2023 · map listings September 2026 · Data credits · How we measure
What this means
As of September 2026, map listings count 6,947 real estate businesses in Harris County. 500 of them (7%) are chain locations, against 6% across the U.S. Per 10,000 households, that is 39.5, 3% above the U.S. rate of 38.5.
Household spending on rent and homeowner costs in Harris County comes to about $27.4B a year: $15,567 per household, 7% below the U.S. average. Housing spending per office is 9% below the U.S. figure. That figure is all rent and homeowner costs, used as a measure of housing demand; it is not money real estate businesses take in.
The official count of businesses with payroll classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors in Harris County was 3,745 in 2023, up 15.8% from 2019. That is one for every 469 households, against one for every 414 across the U.S. Official counts list 24,251 one-person businesses without payroll. Since fiscal 2022, 41 SBA-backed loans worth $13.2M have gone to businesses classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors in Harris County.
Between 2020 and 2025, the population of Harris County grew 6.6%, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). The Groundwork market score for real estate businesses in Harris County is 42 (lower middle), #1,537 of 2,229 scored counties and #120 of 156 scored counties in Texas.
How Harris County compares
The same measures for Texas and the whole U.S. Housing spending per listing divides all rent and homeowner costs by the listings counted: a measure of housing demand for each business, not money any of them take in, so it is shown against the U.S. (100) only. Households per establishment divides households by the official count.
| Measure | Harris County | Texas | U.S. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listings per 10k households | 39.5 | 37.1 | 38.5 |
| Housing spending per listing (U.S. = 100) | 91 | 98 | 100 |
| Households per official establishment | 469 | 473 | 414 |
| Official establishment growth, 2019–2023 | +15.8% | +23.6% | +15.8% |
| Population growth, 2020–2025 | +6.6% | +8.5% | +3.1% |
| Spending per household on rent and homeowner costs | $15,567 | $15,682 | $16,661 |
| Median household income | $74,983 | $78,476 | $80,734 |
| Groundwork market score | 42 | 53 |
Official counts and lending
Businesses
- Official establishments, 2019 to 2023
- 3,235 → 3,745+15.8% over the period
- Employees, 2023
- 26,923
- Annual payroll, 2023
- $2.1B
- One-person businesses, 2023
- 24,251Businesses with no payroll
- Map listings, September 2026
- 6,947500 chain locations
- Listings at the U.S. rate for this spending
- 6,315The U.S. ratio of listings to household spending, applied here
SBA-backed loans since fiscal 2022
- Loans
- 41
- Amount
- $13.2M
SBA-backed loans to businesses classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors in Harris County, through June 2026, placed by the borrower’s ZIP code. Official establishments are businesses with payroll; the official counts leave out places with fewer than 3.
Population and households in Harris County
- Population, 2025 estimate
- 5,045,026+6.6% since 2020
- Households
- 1,757,164
- Median age
- 35.5
- Homes lived in by their owners
- 55%
- Vehicles per household
- 1.8
- Land area
- 1,707 sq. mi.
- People per square mile
- 2,834
- Median household income
- $74,983+21.5% vs. 2015–2019, before inflation
- Average household income
- $111,440
- Median home value
- $276,600
- Jobs located here
- 2,547,424
- Daytime population
- 5,303,910Residents who don’t work, plus everyone whose job is here
Looking at a specific site in Harris County?
These figures cover the whole county. A site report draws rings around one address and counts what’s inside them: households, spending, jobs, and the real estate businesses on map listings by name and distance.
Or open the report at the center of Harris County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
Free10 actions over 3 days, no cardReal estate across Texas
Every Texas market ranked →The highest-scoring counties in Texas for real estate businesses, numbered among those based in Texas, with Harris County marked.
Top counties in Texas
| Market | Score | Listings | Per 10k households | Housing spending per listing (U.S. = 100) | Population growth | U.S. rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1Liberty County, TX | 86 | 41 | 13.1 | 258 | +31.3% | #4 of 2,229 |
| 2San Jacinto County, TX | 83 | 11 | 10.1 | 321 | +7.1% | #11 of 2,229 |
| 3Chambers County, TX | 83 | 29 | 16.8 | 237 | +22.6% | #12 of 2,229 |
| 4Burleson County, TX | 80 | 12 | 15.2 | 222 | +16.2% | #29 of 2,229 |
| 5Rusk County, TX | 79 | 12 | 6.7 | 502 | +5.0% | #35 of 2,229 |
| 6Jackson County, TX | 79 | 5 | 8.3 | 400 | +2.6% | #40 of 2,229 |
| 7Jones County, TX | 78 | 5 | 8.5 | 378 | +6.1% | #51 of 2,229 |
| 8Waller County, TX | 78 | 26 | 14.2 | 264 | +21.9% | #57 of 2,229 |
| 9Clay County, TX | 77 | 6 | 14.0 | 252 | +5.0% | #72 of 2,229 |
| 10Fannin County, TX | 76 | 23 | 18.0 | 192 | +9.2% | #92 of 2,229 |
| 120Harris County, TX | 42 | 6,947 | 39.5 | 91 | +6.6% | #1,537 of 2,229 |
Other business types in Harris County
Each with its Groundwork market score here, out of 100, where it has one.
Food and drink
Groceries and convenience
Auto
Beauty and personal care
Fitness and classes
Health care
Child care
Clothing and laundry
Home services
Real estate
Funeral services
Questions
How many real estate businesses are in Harris County, TX?
Harris County has 6,947 real estate businesses on map listings as of September 2026. 500 of them (7%) are chain locations. The listings count real estate agents and brokers, property managers, mortgage brokers and lenders, and home inspectors. Official counts show 3,745 businesses with payroll classed as real estate agents, property managers, mortgage lenders and inspectors in 2023, up 15.8% from 2019. Official counts also show 24,251 one-person businesses without payroll.
How much do households in Harris County, TX spend on rent and homeowner costs?
About $27.4B a year, or $15,567 per household. That is 7% below the U.S. average (an index of 93, where 100 is the U.S. average). For the 6,947 real estate businesses on map listings, housing spending per office is 9% below the U.S. figure. The spending figure is all rent and homeowner costs, a measure of housing demand, not money real estate businesses take in. It is estimated from the incomes of the 1,757,164 households in Harris County and national spending patterns by income.
How does Harris County, TX compare with the U.S. for real estate businesses?
Harris County has 39.5 real estate businesses per 10,000 households, 3% above the U.S. rate of 38.5. The index of housing spending per office is 91, where 100 is the U.S. At the national ratio of real estate businesses to household spending, Harris County would have about 6,315, against 6,947 on map listings. There is one business with payroll in the industry for every 469 households, against one for every 414 across the U.S. The official count rose 15.8% from 2019 to 2023, against +15.8% for the U.S.
How fast is Harris County, TX growing?
Population estimates put Harris County at 5,045,026 people in 2025, up 6.6% since 2020, faster than the U.S. (+3.1%). It has 1,757,164 households. The median household income in Harris County is $74,983 a year, 7% below the U.S. median of $80,734. That rose 21.5% from the 2015–2019 survey, before inflation.
What is the Groundwork market score?
The Groundwork market score runs from 0 to 100 and compares a market with others of its kind for one business type: states with states, metro areas with metro areas, small-town markets and counties with their own. It weighs household spending per competitor (35%), households per business with payroll (25%), population growth (20%) and spending power (20%), each ranked against those peers. A higher score means that, taken together, the market has more household spending and more households for each business already there, faster population growth and more spending per household than similar markets. It describes a market, not any one site or deal. Harris County scores 42 for real estate businesses (lower middle), #1,537 of 2,229 scored counties.
How can I see the market around a specific site?
Run a Groundwork site report on an address in Harris County. It maps the real estate businesses on map listings near the site and sizes the households and spending within the distance you choose. New accounts get 10 actions over 3 days, no card.
How the score works · Top markets for real estate businesses · All 56 business types in Harris County
Screening a site or an acquisition in Harris County?
A site report maps the competitors on map listings near an address and sizes the households and spending around it.
The button opens the report at the center of Harris County. Signed out, you see a blurred preview; on an account, each report is one action.
This product uses the Census Bureau Data API but is not endorsed or certified by the Census Bureau.
Figures are estimates for research only. Not investment or real estate advice.