|
The Rental Market:
Low Supply, Increased Rents & What To Do
If you've been trying to find temporary housing for displaced policyholders, you've probably been having difficulty finding available units. And, even more, when you do find them, the rent is exorbitant. What's led to this? What can you do about it? Here are our thoughts...
HIGH DEMAND: GREATEST % OF PEOPLE RENTING SINCE 1965
The effects of the recession, housing crisis and student debt have taken their toll resulting in fewer people able or wanting to purchase a home than any time in the last 50 years. The Pew Research Center reported in 2017 that 36.6% of U.S. households were renting. Even more, the Rental Protection Agency has crunched the numbers and determined that 2,654 new renters enter the market every day.
LOW SUPPLY: NEW HOUSING HASN'T KEPT UP WITH NEW HOUSEHOLDS
U.S. Households increased by 11.2 million between 2005 and 2015. Yet, over that same period, only 9.9 million new housing units were constructed.
INCREASED COSTS: RENTS UP 2.7% NATIONALLY
For 2017, rents on a national basis were up 2.7%, which outpaced the 2.1% inflation rate for the year. The surprising thing here is that after 2016's rents were up just under 2% (after over 3% rate growths in each of the preceding 2 years), analysts were anticipating that rate growth might finally be stabilizing as new construction started up, but that didn't pan out.
BONUS: NATURAL DISASTERS AFFECTING SUPPLY, DEMAND & RENT
Hurricanes Harvey, Maria & Irma and wildfires in Northern California destroyed huge amounts of rental inventory while also displacing thousands. As a result, rents in the affected regions have skyrocketed. For instance, Houston, which had one of the softest markets with rents actually falling throughout the first seven months, saw rents increase by 3% after the Hurricane struck. Even worse, Santa Rosa had 5% of its housing destroyed by wildfires and recorded 8.1% rent growth for the year.
SOLUTION: PARTNER WITH HOUSING HQ
Avoid the frustrations of a time-intensive temporary housing search and still obtain the best terms on a short-term lease by partnering with us. We'll find rental units for your policyholders by relying on our established processes, our rental database (which includes single family homes, apartments, mobile homes and even long-term reduced-rate hotels), our relationships with landlords and our negotiating expertise. Ultimately, we make the process easier for you, and keep your policyholders happy.
Have a policyholder with an immediate need? We're available 24/7. Report a loss now >
|
