HOUSTON – (By Dale King, Realty News Report) – The nation’s multifamily housing industry entered 2021 in relatively strong condition despite the disruptions of 2020, according to the National Multifamily Housing Council’s newly released 2021 NMHC 50, the industry’s primary ranking of the largest apartment owners, managers, developers, builders and syndicators in the United States.
NMHC reports that as the market moved into 2021 and through midyear, the multifamily sector “remains a stable and attractive sector,” even after the unprecedented challenges posed by the global pandemic.
The report highlights one notable exception to the general stability: Houston-based property management firm Asset Living made a striking leap in the rankings, rising from 14th place to 5th place among the council’s 50 largest multifamily managers. Asset Living expanded rapidly and began 2021 as the fifth-largest manager on the list, overseeing 103,063 units compared with 71,679 units in 2020.
“It’s an honor to make the list as one of the top five property management firms in the nation,” said Asset Living CEO and President, Ryan McGrath. “This achievement reflects a coordinated effort across the entire organization and comes during our 35th year of service to residents and clients.”
The new ranking marks a milestone for Asset Living, which now manages more than 100,000 units nationwide. McGrath attributed much of the company’s growth to strategic acquisitions that broadened its portfolio across multifamily and affordable housing, single-family rental homes, and senior housing, while continuing to emphasize organic growth in student housing.
Over the past two years, Asset Living increased total units under management by more than 60 percent, expanded its footprint into 109 additional cities, and grew staff by over 50 percent. Recently, the firm completed three acquisitions, including the digital creative agency Poetic, Arizona-based property manager Shelton Residential, and Dallas-based Alpha Barnes Real Estate.
Other firms focused on multifamily operations and construction experienced smaller changes. Houston-based Hanover Co. slipped from 16th to 23rd among NMHC’s top 25 builders after starting construction on 2,344 units in 2020, about 700 fewer than the 3,064 units it began in 2019.
“Before the outbreak of COVID-19 and the related economic weakening, the multifamily industry and the sector’s fundamentals were as healthy as they had been in years,” the NMHC report states. “However, the onset of the pandemic led to the worst economic disruption in decades. With stay-at-home orders, eviction moratoriums and other difficulties, the industry faced immediate market deteriorations.”
Despite those challenges, investor activity rebounded during 2020, with buyers returning from the sidelines—reflecting confidence in the long-term fundamentals of the apartment industry and a positive outlook going forward.
One Houston company appears in multiple categories. Camden Property Trust, led by Ric Campo, ranked 16th (down from 15th) among the top 50 apartment owners, owning 56,850 units, up slightly from 56,107 a year earlier. The firm also ranked 28th (down from 26th) among the largest apartment managers and continues to manage those properties.
Houston has experienced significant apartment construction activity in recent years, reinforcing the region’s role in the national multifamily market.
Top Apartment Firms Ranked by NMHC
The NMHC 50 report lists the leaders in each category, including:
- MAA of Germantown, Tenn., remained the largest apartment owner with 100,490 units, exceeding the 100,000-unit mark for the third consecutive year.
- Greystar Real Estate Partners of Charleston, S.C., ranked first in two categories. It continued as the nation’s largest apartment manager with 669,137 units under management—more than three times the next firm—and it topped the developer list after starting 8,525 apartments in 2020.
- Summit Contracting Group, Inc. of Jacksonville, Fla., remained the highest-producing apartment builder, beginning construction on 9,159 units in 2020—roughly 1,400 more than the next builder.
Boston Financial Investment Management, LP of Boston rose from eighth place in 2020 to become the nation’s largest apartment tax credit syndicator, syndicating 186,785 apartments in 2021.
Additional highlights from the NMHC 50 include:
- 2,318,732 – Total units owned by the NMHC 50 top owners, representing 9.9 percent of the U.S. apartment stock.
- 3,899,797 – Total units collectively managed by NMHC 50 top managers.
- 6 percent – Apartment vacancy rate in 2020 according to RealPage, a decline of only 20 basis points from the prior year.
- 364,600 – Number of apartments completed in 2020, per the Census Bureau.
- $138.7 billion – Total multifamily transaction volume in 2020 according to Real Capital Analytics.
“Despite initial fears, the multifamily sector experienced a sharp rebound after the second quarter,” said Caitlin Sugrue Walter, vice president of research for NMHC. “That positive trend continues today as shown by growth in deal flow. The recovery is not yet complete, but the industry is well-placed for a strong 2021.”
April 27, 2021 Realty News Report Copyright 2021
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File: Top Apartment Firms Ranked by NMHC
Image: Courtesy D’Agostino Companies
File: (2) Camden Property Trust. Asset Living. Hanover. Top Apartment Firms Ranked by NMHC. Greystar.