There are several reasons for optimism when it comes to multifamily’s prospects over the next two years. After all, supply is short, demand is rising, fundamentals are improving and a mix of consumer constituencies ranging from household-forming Echo Boomers to disillusioned would-be homebuyers and empty nesters are coming out of the woodwork to give renting a new lease on life. The National Multi Housing Council estimates that two-thirds of all new households formed between 2008 and 2015 will be renters, to the tune of six million people.

“Rental housing might be the one bright spot in real estate,” says Stephen Melman, director of economic services at the National Association of Home Builders in Washington, DC. And with a pullback on new construction, which began back in 2008; rising occupancy levels; and an uptick in absorption between 2009 and 2010, it’s easy to surmise that the market could be poised for an even stronger performance in the years ahead...

To read the rest of the story, visit the February/March 2011 issue of Real Estate Forum online.