Multifamily housing has always been a steady performing asset class, and trends show this will continue:

• The percentage of our population who are defined as renters - echo boomers, students, and seniors - continues to increase. The percentage of young adults living at home is well above the 25 year trend.
• Demand has bounced back sharply during the first half of 2010 and modest job growth will cause this trend to accelerate.
• Consumers continue to move to renting. We've had six years of declining homeownership rates and gained five million new renter households from 2005-2010. (Ron Witten, Witten Advisors)
• Resident retention rates are increasing dramatically due to improved customer service efforts (MFE, June 2010)

If an economic recovery brings the share down to only 28 percent, that would mean an additional 950,000 households, most of whom would be renters.

For more information on the apartment industry, visit the publisher's blog.

Source: *NMHC, **US Census, *** Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies