Rise in renting will impact suburbs, cities
The map shows recent changes in homeownership in US metro areas. Many have seen a rise in rental housing.
A report from the MacArthur Foundation, How Housing Matters: Americans' Attitudes Transformed By The Housing Crisis & Changing Lifestyles, is more confirmation of what we have reported for a long time: The American real estate landscape is changing dramatically. Renting is becoming more appealing, and home ownership is less of a goal for many families.
As reported by Richard Florida reported in the Atlantic Cities, "more than half (57 percent) believe that 'buying has become less appealing,' while 54 percent believe that 'renting has become more appealing.' "
The US homeownership rate has fallen from its peak of 70 percent in the middle of the last decade, down to about 65 percent today. The Urban Land Insitute expects it to fall to 60 percent over the course of the decade.
The trend is most pronounced among the young. "The rate of home ownership among younger Americans has declined at substantially faster clip, dropping from around 43 percent before the crash to roughly 37 percent today," Florida writes.
This will have a positively affect downtowns, close-in neighborhoods, and walkable communities, where the demand will be strong for multifamily rental buildings. But this shift will also have a profound effect on suburbs. Single-family suburbs, which have been overwhelmingly white and based on home ownership, will become more diverse and more geared toward rentals in the coming years.
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