There is a huge focus on encouraging Millennials—who are mostly single– to come out of their parents’ basements and buy a house or at least rent an apartment, even a “micro unit,” or some form of communal living, as we are underserved by affordable housing, especially in large urban, coastal areas.

However, Daryl Carter, founder and CEO of Avanath Capital Management, which owns and operates over 7,000 LIHTC (low income housing tax credit), Section 8 and naturally affordable rental housing units in urban areas, says there is an unmet need for larger units. He says the greatest demand is for three-and-four bedroom apartments, which also have the lowest turnover and which have the longest waiting list. His residents earn $25,000 to $75,000 a year, according to nreionline.

The National Multifamily Housing Council tells MHProNews that 22 percent of rental households are headed by a person 30 or younger; 44 percent are headed by a person 45 or older; 52 percent of rental households are comprised of some sort of family configuration—multigenerational, couples with and without children, blended families, etc., while 48 percent of rentals are occupied by unmarried singles. The total multifamily rental housing stock is 18.4 units, but only 1.6 million units are three-bedroom or larger, 8.7 percent.

Carter says this imbalance feeds into rising rents for the larger units as well as more demand for single-family rentals, both of which tend to move the units beyond the affordable range.

His company acquires older properties with larger units and upgrades them to make them affordable housing.

However, they are also hatching a different scheme: new workforce housing in Orlando, “utilizing a modular system that will reduce construction costs and development timeframes”—and with two-and three-bedrooms. ##

(Photo credit: zimbio)

Article submitted by Matthew J. Silver  to Daily Business News-MHProNews.