Developers Flee Seattle: Suburbs Preferred Over City Policies
If the city of Seattle is "choosing developers over people," why are developers increasingly choosing suburbs over the city of Seattle?
LA Institutional Apathy Boosts SoCal Apartment Demand
Camden found a buyer for its SoCal apartment portfolio (most of which is Orange County or San Diego), and industry gossip is it's at aggressive price. More broadly: It seems the growing institutional disinterest in L.A. is driving increased interest in...
Apartment REITs Reveal Merger Rumors and Rent Rebound
The apartment REITs wrapped up earnings calls, and just wrote up 8 takeaways -- the rumored merger, renter financial health, the potential rent rebound, market conditions across the country, stock buybacks, new regulatory risks, etc. https://t.co/I7IyydGpMM
Gen Z Drives Rise in Prime Credit Scores Nationwide
Good news: Gen Z is very credit conscience, and they are driving an upward shift in the share of Americans with prime credit scores. I would assume rent reporting to credit bureaus (relatively new thing) is a marginal contributor to the...
Under‑25 Renters Remain Steady, Guarantor Need Declines
Super interesting: MAA (nation's largest apartment REIT by unit count with 103k units) said it sees no softness among renters under age 25 despite rising unemployment rate among recent college grads. The <25 demographic represents 20% of move-ins -- and...
Alternative Funds Boost Affordable Housing, Not Rewrite LIHTC
Good read on alternative funds for affordable housing, though grossly mischaracterizes LIHTC affordable housing with petty digs. Still, always a win to see new creative solutions. They're not "rewriting" anything as headline suggests, but simply adding much needed supply. https://t.co/tDa49cBiAr
Rent Control Drives Developers to Halt New Projects
If you really think rent control doesn't reduce supply, go spend time talking to apartment developers who build that supply -- and ask them why they're not building in St. Paul MN or Montgomery County MD and why they've frozen...
Build Housing First, Then Consider Rent Control
Here is the problem with the "rent control + build public/social housing supply" argument: You shut down supply on Day 1. It then takes years to build the new housing program and more years to build the housing itself. Meanwhile you just exacerbated...
Only 2% of Economists Support Rent Control Policies
A U. of Chicago survey found that 2% of academic economists think rent control has had a positive impact. So it's a good reminder than fringe views like this below do exist, but they're just that.
Merger's Rental Impact Overblown: Firms Hold <0.8% Market
Ummmm, WOW. Feels like the kinda thing some activist investor trying to push behind scenes and leaks to media to apply pressure. But I have no inside knowledge of it. I will say this: To say such a merger would negatively...
Census Multifamily Housing Starts Data Is Unreliable, Ignore It
This is your monthly reminder that Census data on multifamily housing starts is garbage and should be ignored. https://t.co/Rfw5uADvR4
Apartment REITs Show Steady Gains Amid Tapering Supply
Quick read of apartment REITs earnings reports this week: Seems to be mostly a steady-eddy, as-expected story -- good occupancy, low turnover, and even some concession burn-off. Not a surge, but clearly optimistic as supply tapers back.
Haggerty Bill Rewards Cities Cutting Housing Barriers
While ROAD gets all the attention, there's a better pro-supply bill getting sparse attention that would likely produce far more housing (for sale and for rent), proposed by Sen. Haggerty. It's premise is simple: Reward cities that remove barriers to housing...
Forced Sale Clause Undermines Build‑to‑Rent Viability
This line from the WSJ article on build-to-rent construction freeze tells you a lot: The authors of the ROAD to Housing heard this statement (which is generally true), and totally whiffed on understanding what it meant and why a forced...
Housing Preferences Vary; Pricey Suburbs Aren't for Everyone
This (presumably sarcastic) post is getting a lot of hate, and I get it. Even as a DFW guy, this would not be a top 10 square for me. But there's a "to each their own" factor that some of us...
U.S. Apartment Leasing Remains Flat, Defying Expectations
Latest newsletter: A ho-hum start to the leasing season for the U.S. apartment market. If you thought the market would tank due to weak job numbers, you were wrong. And if you expected a strong rebound, you were wrong, too. https://t.co/CFNiA6Ycf7
Austin's Housing: Supply Outpaces Demand, Not Shortage
It's not a demand issue in Austin. There's plenty of it. But even more supply than demand.
Urban Apartment Build Slows, Suburban Rents Set to Outpace
Apartment construction is down everywhere but ESPECIALLY in/around downtown areas across the U.S. On a relative basis, we built far more apartments in urban areas than in the suburbs over the past 15 years. As a result, urban rents grew far...
1971 REIT IPO Thrived Without Full‑Time Employees
The story of Terry Considine's first REIT IPO in 1971 is incredible: "The preliminary prospectus identified a particular risk that the company had no full-time employees, and would not until ... Mr. Constantine graduated from law school. So that notwithstanding that...
Former Solicitor General Calls ROAD Housing Act Unconstitutional
A former U.S. Solicitor General just put out a paper arguing that the ROAD to Housing Act is "constitutionally flawed thrice over." It's not an easy read, full of legalese, but boils down to three key arguments: 1) It violates the Constitution's...
Rent Control Still Shrinks Housing Supply Through Conversions, Decay
Excellent points as always from John. I would add, in long run, while rent control may have minimal impact on new construction when exempted, it's still supply killer via a) conversions to for-sale and b) aging/rotting of old apartments into obsolescence.
80‑Year‑Old Billionaire Still Launches New Apartment Venture
If you sold your business for $10 billion and were nearing 80 years old, would you hang up the cleats and enjoy retirement? If you say "yes," you are not Aimco/AIR founder Terry Considine, who is starting over again with his...
White House Report Calls for Faster, Less-Regulated Housing Build
The White House CEA just released their 2026 Economic Report, and there's an excellent section on housing. Cliff's Notes version: Make it a lot easier and quicker to build a lot more housing of all types. Very YIMBY message, and details...
Apartment Development Remains Fragmented; No 8k+ Builder Since 2019
For the first time since 2019, no single apartment developer started 8k+ units last year, according to the newly released NMHC Top 25 developers list. Greystar still ranked No. 1 with 7.2k units, amounting to 1.9% of all U.S. apartment starts...
U.S. Apartment Industry Remains Highly Fragmented, No Dominant Owner
Name one major U.S. industry where the biggest players have <0.5% market share. The apartment business has gotta be the most fragmented major industry, is it not? Big names, sure, but no behemoth owners. (Analysis from today's release of the NMHC Top...
Morgan Properties Surges to #2, Greystar Holds Top Spot
The 2026 NMHC Top 50 rankings are out. Owners: Morgan Properties leapfrogs MAA into No. 2 spot, adding 14k units to reach 110k. Greystar remains No. 1, but was net seller last year. https://t.co/6UNTlK2tUF
Apartment Supply Surge Ends, Rent Growth Stalls
It's official: The historic wave of new apartment supply is now in the rearview mirror. Completions in Q1'26 came in at one of the lowest levels in 7+ years, and will likely hover around these levels for a while --...
7‑Year Sell Rule Threatens Build‑to‑
I suspect whoever wrote Section 901 of the ROAD to Housing Act heard that many investors have 7-year holds, and so they added a requirement that investors must sell build-to-rent homes after 7 years. But it's so much more complex than...
March Rents Rise Modestly as Supply Overhang Dampens Growth
Apartment rents increased in March (the start of the leasing season), but more muted than normal. Demand remained solid despite the economic headwinds, but still playing catch up to the supply overhang from 2023-25 (biggest supply wave since 1970s). As CoStar's Grant...
Net Operating Income Depends on More Than Just Rent
NOI is what matters, and rent is obviously a big part of that but not the only part. Expenses, turnover, vacant days between leases, ancillary incomes, etc, all matter too.
Investors Shun BTR Projects Due to Seven‑year Resale Limit
More on the collapse of BTR construction: "Those investors are not investing right now because no one is going to invest in something that they have to sell in seven years… We’ve already stopped a lot of housing at a time...
Dean Weidner: Legendary Owner of 12th‑Largest U.S. Apartment Portfolio
Totally missed this news from a couple weeks ago. Dean Weidner was legend in the apartment business. His company ranks as 12th largest apartment owner in U.S. https://t.co/p7TLCLlI3o
Bell Controls 70k Apartments, Owns Significant Portion
Big deal in apartment world. Bell manages 70k apartment units and owns a good sized chunk as well. https://t.co/OJW8Os8jr6
Rent Control Myths: Government Can't Build Enough, Developers Won't Stay
The arguments that rent control does NOT disrupt housing supply boils down to two (bad) theories: 1) The government can build enough for everyone. 2) The private sector is just bluffing when they say they'll pull back in cities with rent control.
Renters Rights Act Hurting London Rental Supply, Data Mis
This is so terribly misleading. 1) This is ALL housing, not just rentals. 2) Even so, London rental supply DID fall last year largely due to the "Renters Rights Act," which swings pendulum so far that it's disincentivizing rental supply.
Housing Ratios Ignore Location and Unit Condition
This is why it's really dumb to look at population-to-housing ratios or compare homelessness to vacancy. You have to account for: A) location / neighborhood (growing areas versus shrinking areas), and B) condition / age of housing unit.
Regulatory Spotlight Shifts From Single-Family Rentals to Apartments
My latest newsletter: The regulatory spotlight shifts from single-family rentals to apartments. Also, I dug into Sen. Warren's letters probing rental housing investors, which include 7 claims that may sound alarming but that lack critical context needed for a real discussion....
Warren's Misleading Threats Could Reduce Housing Supply
This is wild. Senator Warren is now threatening apartment developers and investors, too, with a letter chock-full of misinformation. Such threats can scare off development capital, and they just shift to building warehouses or something else. But America's renters become collateral...
Spring Leasing Lags Behind Last Year, Vacancy Trends Unclear
New data from Radix (apartment data provider) shows no sign yet of a spring leasing bump -- and, in fact, a slower start to the spring leasing season than what we saw at the same time last year. We'll get data...
YIMBYs Reject Senator Warren's NIMBY Conference Proposal
I am glad to see pro-housing YIMBY groups refuse to go along with a very NIMBY request from Senator Warren. What a wild thing to even request. Why would any honest YIMBY refuse to call for a conference that could lead...
Proposed ROAD Act Threatens Rental Development Capital
The ROAD to Housing Act is already freezing up development capital -- and it's not even enacted yet. Build-to-rent developers say equity capital is essentially frozen, lenders are "pausing" on new projects, and new starts potentially imperiled. Much frustration not only with...
Senate's BTR Ban Overlooks 50k Units Annual Impact
On the Senate's build-to-rent ban, I see some argue "it's a small sector so it's not a big deal." As a % of market, it's small. But 50k units / year is material. And if you think all those units will...
Bad Housing Ideas Stall Construction Before Policy Passes
Policymakers and media, generally speaking, underestimate the power of bad ideas on housing -- even prior to becoming formal policy. Examples: 1) Boston rent control ballot measure is shutting off construction even prior to vote. 2) ROAD to (Less) Housing Act is scaring...
Support ROAD to Housing Act to Boost Build‑to‑Rent
Honored to join @johnburnsjbrec and other housing researchers in this open letter advocating for the ROAD to Housing Act to remove supply-crushing restrictions on build-to-rent constructions. https://t.co/q7keYTNVFJ
Housing Act Will Reduce Housing Supply
Good news for pro-housing and pro-science peeps. Bad news for NIMBYs. ROAD to Housing Act = ROAD to Less Housing.
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Renters relocating from California prefer Texas and Nevada. Renters relocating from New York prefer Florida and New Jersey. Interesting data from Apartment List. https://t.co/qJvXYBSwxJ
More Rental Units Drag Single-Family Rent Growth to Decade Low
This additional rental supply is putting downward pressure on single-family rents. One reason why SFR rent growth is at 10-year low. https://t.co/wh9Qyhz6TK
Affordable Housing Mirrors Market-Rate; Myths Persist About Section 8.
Most people would never be able to tell the difference between a Class A market-rate apartment project and a modern affordable housing development. Yet affordable developers still confront myths all the time that they're building Section 8 "projects." https://t.co/2C59S50Hql
City Tackles Housing Crisis by Tracking Corporate Owners
The city that can't turn on electricity for new apartment developments is gonna solve its housing problems by tracking corporate ownership.
Policy Failures, Not Private Firms, Drive California's Insurance Crisis
California's property insurance problems are very similar to its housing problems -- an obvious consequence of bad public policy shrinking supply, and yet the private sector is often blamed for it. There is no "easy button" to solving complex problems decades...