Private Equity Now Owns 1 in 8 U.S. Apartment Units, Up 50% Since 2021

According to a recent report from the Private Equity Stakeholder Project (PESP), private equity firms currently control almost 3 million apartment units in the U.S., accounting for 13% of the market, or one in every eight units. Since 2021, around 1.3 million of these units have been purchased, reflecting a 50% surge. Blackstone, recognized as the largest private equity firm globally, holds over 230,000 units and has increased rents by more than 30% in certain buildings since 2018. The report highlights that private equity ownership has intensified housing affordability challenges, leading to significant rent increases, aggressive evictions, and maintenance issues. Texas tops the list with nearly 580,000 private equity-owned units, largely due to lax zoning laws and inadequate tenant protections. The growth has been supported by Freddie Mac's lower interest rates for large investors and firms like Greystar, which nearly doubled its apartment holdings from 2016 to 2021. A bipartisan bill in Congress, endorsed by both Trump and Senator Elizabeth Warren, aims to prohibit corporate ownership of most existing single-family homes while allowing new 'Build to Rent' developments, which have seen their market share double from 2021 to 2024. Additionally, many private equity firms have utilized RealPage software for price-fixing but received only minor penalties last year after employing lobbyists linked to Trump.