Troubled home market creates generation of renters

Troubled home market creates generation of renters

 

Tammy Voss (left) of Appleton gets help moving into her new apartment June 1 from her mother, Pat Voss, of Almond. The housing market slump has led to a growing number of Americans opting to rent instead of purchasing a house. / Dan Powers/The Post-Crescent

Tammy Voss is content being an apartment renter for now.

"At this point in my life and career and with teaching jobs the way they are, it just makes sense for me," said Voss, 27, an art teacher who recently moved into an apartment in a central Appleton neighborhood.
A growing number of Americans either can't afford a home or don't want to own one, a trend that's spawning a generation of renters and driving new apartment construction.Many new renters are former owners who lost homes to foreclosure or bankruptcy. For others who could afford one, a home now feels too costly, too risky or unlikely to appreciate enough to make it a worthwhile investment.The proportion of U.S. households that own homes is at its lowest point since 1998. When the housing bubble burst four years ago, 31.6 percent of households were renters. Now, it's at 33.6 percent and rising. Since the housing meltdown, nearly 3 million households have become renters. At least 3 million more are expected by 2015, according to census data analyzed by Harvard's Joint Center for Housing Studies and The Associated Press.
All told, nearly 38 million households are renters.
There is a need for more multifamily housing in Appleton, said Karen Harkness, the city's director of community development.
"I think it has a lot to do with the economy and uncertainty people have about their jobs," she said of demand for rentals.
New apartments are in the pipeline in Appleton.
» Lake Park Apartments on South Lake Park Road are under review by the city. The developer is proposing 184 units.
» The last approval of apartment units in Appleton was for Eagle Flats. Riverwalk Place will have 70 units and The Landing will have 54 units.
Demand for more apartments is benefitting firms including Commonwealth Development Corp. in Fond du Lac, which specializes in multifamily housing. The company has built and manages many properties in the Fox Cities.
Among its holdings is Mission Village in Menasha, a senior housing development with 66 units. The company also has another property it's building in Grand Chute as well as projects in Sheboygan and Milwaukee and four others in the planning stages, said Marissa Downs, a senior vice president of at Commonwealth.
Source http://www.postcrescent.com/