Why Rental Market Is Going Strong

Looking to invest in real estate, the rental market may be your best friend right now. As homeownership costs are still outpacing the cost of renting by nearly 10 percent and purchasing a home is difficult in a tight capital market, renting is still the option of choice for many. Investment News has an article today talking about the opportunities for either investing in REITs or personal rental properties while the housing market is still slow.

Despite falling home prices, Mr. Leupold said that it is still far cheaper to rent than to own a home in today’s market.
“If you look at the ratio of homeownership costs to rent, it’s out of whack from its historic level by about 5% to 10%,” he said. “This means rents could increase 5% to 10% before you get back into the historic equilibrium.”
All this appears to bode well for apartment REITs, and investors have taken notice. Apartment REITs have been on a tear so far in 2008, generating total returns that included dividends of 17.9% for the year to date through last Thursday, according to the National Association of Real Estate Investment Trusts