The rental population is booming…

In 2014, there were nearly 22 million more renters in U.S. metropolitan areas compared to in 2006. 11 of the largest metro areas such as San Francisco, LA, Miami, NYC, DC and Atlanta were some of the places heavily affected by this change.

But what we’re all wondering is why?

It turns out that affordable housing has become out of reach for many. In the majority of the 11 metropolitan areas, the number of rental units that were affordable to the typical renter has fallen since 2006 .The increase in prices in the downtown areas have pushed lower to middle class families out of the cities and into the suburbs.

Yet, people still aren’t buying – many are now renting out single family homes. According to a new report by New York University’s Furman Center,  “In every metro except for Boston and New York City, more than one in five renters lived in a single-family home in 2014.” Studies say that rent, adjusted for inflation, in the surrounding suburbs grew only by 2% while rent in the principal cities increased by 5%.

Will this be a good thing for suburban areas?  We’re all waiting to see…

But for now, landlords should be prepared for this increase in demand and get those suburban homes ready for rental living.

By: Brianna Burnette

Sources: wsj.com, furmancenter.org