Apartment REIT Chief Execs Offer Their Positive Outlook

The apartment rental industry is doing well with the depressed housing market and few new apartment communities being built. In fact, some of the industry's top players expect it will likely stay that way for several years.

Four chief executives of major apartment owners gave a rosy outlook at the recent National Association of Real Estate Investment Trusts World Conference in Dallas. UDR Inc. President and CEO Thomas Toomey said there are many factors that will help the sector, including the fact that many in the millennial generation prefer to live in apartments close to the city. UDR has ownership interests in approximately 62,000 apartments.

The national vacancy rate for apartments in the U.S. stood at 5.6 percent at the end of the third quarter, with average rents up 1.8 percent from a year before. Some of the panelists raised concerns about Europe's debt crisis, which they fear could depress job growth.

The CEOs said they expect the U.S. homeownership rate to continue to fall, which will likely increase their business. Equity Residential President and CEO David Neithercut concluded that job growth is not as critical for the industry as it was in past cycles. He added, "We don’t see any reason that for the next several years we won’t see very strong revenue growth in our space."

Article posted on the National Apartment Association News Releases. To view the original article, click here. Digested From "Apartment REITs: These Are The Salad Days" Wall Street Journal (11/16/11) by Kris Hudson