DETROIT–The mortgage and home buying markets continue to be hot, but many American cities are increasingly comprised of renters.
Fifty-two of the 100 largest U.S. cities were “majority renter” in 2015, according to data compiled for Bloomberg by real estate brokerage Redfin. Bloomberg reported that 21of those cities have shifted to renter-domination since 2009, including hot housing markets such as Denver and San Diego, and “lukewarm” real estate markets such as Detroit and Baltimore.
“While U.S. home ownership ticked up in the second half of 2016, there are reasons to think the trend toward renting will continue,” Bloomberg reported. “A 2015 report from the Urban Institute predicted that rentership would keep rising through 2030, thanks to demographic trends that include aging baby boomers who downsize into rentals…In the shorter term, housing market dynamics will also play a role. Fewer than one million homes were on the market in the first quarter of 2017, the lowest number since Trulia began recording inventory data in 2012. The shortage makes it harder for renters to buy. Meanwhile, rental landlords, including large Wall Street players and mom-and-pop investors, continue to plow cash into single-family homes.”
The full Bloomberg report can be found here.