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"I just didn't think it was worth it anymore." Andrew Davis, 30,
takes a contemplative sip of his espresso as he continues. "At the
end of the day, I was just unsure of where I wanted to be in a
few years and what I wanted to do. So I kept my options open."
Andrew is one of the
millions of Americans to
have recently jumped into
the burgeoning single-
family rental market.
And he didn't have to.
He was a homeowner as
recently as two years ago. He's got a good job
and could afford to purchase his next home
if he wanted to. But he doesn't. Instead, he's
going on year two of leasing a 1500 square
foot single-family home in the heart of Dallas,
Texas. Is the rent higher than a potential
mortgage payment would be? Sure. But that's
not the point. He's keeping his options open.
e possibilities are endless.
On the other end of the spectrum are Jerry
and Nancy, 34 and 32 respectively. e couple
has been married for six years and would love
to be homeowners. "I don't see that happening
for us anytime soon," Jerry said.
While they are gainfully employed and pay
their bills on time, their household income is
below the national median and a series of past
indiscretions has wreaked havoc on their credit.
ey're more worried now about providing for
their daughter than purchasing their dream
home. So they rent a small single-family home
on the outskirts of Dallas. ey've been there
for three years.
It's no secret that homeownership in the
United States is on the decline and currently
sits at nearly the lowest point in half a century.
To be more precise, the homeownership rate
dropped to 63.7 percent in the second quarter
of 2015, the lowest it's been since 1967.
And that doesn't look to be changing
anytime soon. Have demographic shifts and
new financial realities altered the equation of
the American Dream? Have we become a rent-
first nation?
e Urban Institute seems to think so.
In their estimation, at this rate, new
renters will outpace new homeowners
C O V E R S T O R Y / D E R E K T E M P L E T O N & B R I A N H O N E A
"Clearly, there is a subset of renters who will pay a premium
to rent new, as evidenced by the 200K+ apartment units that
are built and leased every year. If it works for apartment
developers, why has there not been much attempt to build
single-family homes for rent? Those days are now ending."
