Housing Trends: Single Family “Build to Rent”

Posted on June 20, 2022, by Starlett Massey

Is a new model of innovative housing coming our way? The limited supply of residential property in Florida, particularly in the Tampa Bay region, has peaked over the last two years, given the arrival of many new residents to our community.¹ The Tampa metro area had some of the largest net domestic migration gains in the U.S.²

Additionally, rapidly increasing home prices have been pricing out many would-be buyers³, and the Federal Reserve’s increases in interest rates are raising the cost of mortgage financing. In light of the radical change in the local population and home prices, it is reasonable to study other metropolitan areas’ responses to their local housing crises. One such response is the development of single-family build-to-rent communities. We predict that the community of renters soon will include older, more affluent renters than in the past, as these renters want the perks of single-family home living but cannot afford local home prices.

Local developers are beginning to capitalize on build-to-rent communities, and we predict this will increase in Tampa Bay. “Developers have ramped up activity levels in recent years and will likely complete approximately 60,000 single-family homes as rental units in 2022, up more than 40 percent from levels recorded as recently as 2017.”⁴

Build to Rent is Trending Across the Country

Nationally, according to the U.S. Census in 2020, builders added 226,000 single-family rentals. “The Single-Family Rental Market Index, a quarterly survey that gauges the industry’s health by measuring factors such as median rent, leasing activity, and occupancy, rose to 90.3 out of 100 in the first quarter of 2021 from 62.5 out of 100 a year earlier, according to John Burns Real Estate Consulting and NRHC, which created the index in mid-2019.”⁵ Built-to-rent operators are actively buying vacant land, and this acquisition is occurring most rapidly in the southeast U.S. Data indicates that build-to-rent operators account for 15% of raw land purchases in Florida.

As the real estate market has soared in Tampa Bay and affordable housing spiraled for many would-be home buyers and renters, developers, homeowners, and renters will need to navigate the tumultuous legal issues accompanying these changes. The lawyers at Massey Law Group are here to assist with the wide range of real estate and business law issues that arise in this volatile market.

For more information, schedule a consultation today. 

The above is intended to inform firm clients and friends about recent developments in the law, including analysis of statutes and new case decisions. This update should not be construed as legal advice or a legal opinion, and readers should not act upon the information contained herein without seeking the advice of legal counsel. 

[1] https://www.tampabay.com/news/business/2021/12/09/more-people-are-moving-to-tampa-bay-from-south-florida-why/;

[2] https://www.wfla.com/news/florida/florida-metros-gained-population-as-most-of-us-shrank-census-reports/

[3] Tampa has a 29% increase in median entry level mortgage payments.

[4] https://rebusinessonline.com/single-family-build-to-rent-changing-renter-demographics-fuel-growth/

[5] https://www.wealthmanagement.com/sfr/single-family-rentals-come-age