In today’s round table discussion, Co-head of JLL’s Multifamily Capital Market’s platform, Christine Espenshade; CEO of Holland Partner Group, Clyde Holland; and Executive Director of Up for Growth National Coalition, Mike Kingsella explore the future of the Multifamily Housing Market and the policies shaping its trajectory.

The Future

While Clyde, Christine, and Mike agree that the outlook is positive and the economy is picking up, the supply is already a problem for the increasing demand in the market.

Clyde advises developers and builders to get start building now to get ahead of the projected buying challenges, with the knowledge that it may be slow in the beginning but will pay off as demand increases.

Christine emphasizes that institutional investors are already interested and willing to support these long-term projects because they know that the investment promises steady, safe returns. The shift from home ownership to long-term apartment occupancy is also a clear marker that multifamily housing is a crucial option the market needs to focus on.

Policies Slow Progression

Mike sees the issue of supply stemming from the exclusionary policies that are suppressing growth. At Up For Growth National Coalition, their mission is to advocate for a new approach to housing development, focusing on how growth benefits everyone in the community.

Clyde, an original founder of Up for Growth, feels the push back from the city council against development regularly.

“Even though there is a housing crisis my building housing is considered a negative… Cities have responded to housing not being affordable by introducing policies that made it more expensive.”

He adds that developer’s voices are often not valued because people think their motives and projects are all about making money, not about improving their community. Up for Growth acts as the voice for this cause, advocating for more affordable housing close to jobs and transportation so employees can spend more time with their families.

“If you have to commute for two hours each way in order to gain a job in the SF Bay Area, the breadwinner doesn’t have an opportunity to spend time with their spouse and their kids,” said Mike.

Mike and Clyde see a combination of tax-exempt bond financing for affordable housing at the federal level combined with state-regulated opportunities for development as the solution to both traffic congestion and housing challenges.

Christine also concludes that we need to think about housing as a holistic approach to growing our economy and mixing these government partnerships with private investments for a positive long-term plan.