Demand for family rentals expected to jump over next few years

Demand for rental units by families is expected to far outstrip supply over the next few years.

Over the past decade, developers have been focused on single, urban, and transient millennials, while often ignoring demand from families, according to a new report, Family Renter Housing: A Response to the Changing Growth Dynamics of the Next Decade, by RCLCO and the Urban Land Institute’s Terwilliger Center for Housing. As homeownership rates have declined and housing costs have risen, however, developers may now have the incentive they need to focus on families over the next decade.

The report notes that there are new forms of rental family housing emerging, but there are continuing challenges to getting them constructed, including developer preferences, entitlement, zoning, and other regulations.