Single Family Built-for-Rent Construction Slows in 2019

The single-family homes built for rent (SFBFR) rarely draws much attention in the U.S. Census Bureau’s Quarterly Starts and Completions by Purpose and Design report. They are just a small fraction of the overall housing market’s activity. However, given the current tight supply and high prices of home for sale, SFBFR provides additional and affordable single-family residences, which do not require a large down payment. There were approximately 7,000 SFBFR starts for the final quarter of 2019. This is lower than the 10,000 estimated for the fourth quarter of 2018. Over the last four quarters, 38,000 such homes began construction, which is lower than the 43,000 estimated SFBFR starts for the four quarter prior to that period.