Single-family rental market stressed by flood of investment, new players

Less than a decade ago, efforts to establish the single-family-home rental market as a new asset class was considered preposterous by many seasoned real estate investors. Today, it’s about the hottest thing in real estate, so much so that too many dollars and players are chasing too few quality deals, according to remarks made during a recent Real Assets Adviser podcast by Mark Wolf, founder and CEO of AHV Communities, a builder of master-planned single-family rental (SFR) communities.

“Today, we have a full onslaught of players and capital trying to get involved in this business,” he said. “They’ve come rushing in for lack of alternatives.”

On the surface, Wolf says, the SFR market is a simple, fundamental business plan and the good investors and builders make it look deceptively easy. That has encouraged dilettantes to enter the business to take advantage of the brisk capital flows seeking SFR opportunities.

Wolf comes to SFR communities f