Publications

- April 1, 2022: Vol. 34, Number 4

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Demographic trends support Sun Belt markets

by Loretta Clodfelter

Investor interest in the apartment sector has been strong, coming into 2022, and it is likely to continue. In particular, positive demographic trends are supporting metros in the Sun Belt region of the United States.

Gerardo Mahuad, managing principal at Eagle Property Capital, sees the most opportunity for workforce housing investing right now in Houston, Dallas–Fort Worth, Orlando and Tampa, Fla. “Sun Belt metros in general are showing exceptional migration, household formation and employment growth,” he says. That population growth is expected to support rental growth for multifamily assets in those markets.

In fact, five of the top 10 markets with the highest apartment rent growth since the pandemic began are in Florida, according to Marcus & Millichap, and the rest of the top 10 are also Southeast or Southwest markets. By contrast, the lowest rent growth was seen in the Northeast, upper Midwest and West Coast.

“The pandemic has made people prior

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