Meg EpsteinNASHVILLE–At a time when there's a widely acknowledged housing shortage, why is apartment building so popular with both lenders and investors, and new condo construction so scarce? Developer Meg Epstein has some answers. She blames it partly on the lenders.
“Banks hate funding condo projects. They can't repossess a condo project and just rent it out and wait to sell it. If it goes bust, they lose a lot of money. They are just too conservative, despite the risks not actually being that much greater than multi-family, when you factor in supply/demand,” she tells GlobeSt.com.
The US housing crunch has brought a daily diet of new multifamily projects. New condo development has lagged far behind. But they are a safer and better investment for both investors and lenders, believes Epstein. In fact, she projects condo investment returns of up to 18%.
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David Wilkening
David Wilkening began his long journalism career as a police reporter for Chicago-area newspapers. He became a writer-editor for major newspapers in Chicago, Washington, Detroit and Florida. He has been a business editor, political editor and travel editor for newspapers and magazines. He tried for a while to be a political operative but did better as an adjunct college professor teaching English and journalism. He is the author of several books, both ghost-written and under his own name. He is also a widely published freelance writer who currently lives in Orlando.
