Multifamily Shortages Inevitable in Amazon's Next HQ City

The city that Amazon chooses for its second headquarters location will inevitably see tremendous growth—but it will also see some initial challenges. Mike Akerly, VP at Polaris Pacific, says that housing shortages and dramatic increases in rental rates will be inevitable following the announcement. It isn’t all bad news, however. There will be ample opportunities for investors and developers, and if the chosen city properly manages the move, they will create incentives for lower income housing. We sat down with Akerly for an exclusive interview to find out more.

GlobeSt.com: How do you think the city that Amazon chooses be impacted by the move?

Mike Akerly: This is a game changer not only for cities but for a lot of tech and industrial firms that have looked at the process that Amazon just did. I bet you are getting a lot of people in board rooms right now saying to themselves what incentives a city would offer if they put themselves out there. I think this could be the start of this sort of thing happening. Amazon was just the first to do it.