Parkland Residential has fully leased its first build-to-rent community, Sweetwater Springs in Lawrenceville, Georgia, within 90 days. The Atlanta-area community consists of 58 stacked townhomes surrounded by green park space, designed to meet a demand for “missing middle” housing in the area.
“This community is perfectly positioned to meet missing middle demand, and leasing 58 units in just 90 days proves we are on target with what the market needs,” says Jim Jacobi, president of Parkland Residential. “Our renters have an average income of $113,000, an average credit score of 652, and the mean age is 40 years old.”
Given the renters’ financial literacy, Parkland Residential has concluded that its customers have chosen to rent instead of buy, even if they have the financial means to purchase a home. According to a recent study by LendingTree, median housing costs are lower for renters than for homeowners with mortgages in all of the top 50 markets; in Atlanta, this difference amounts to $388 per month.
The rear-entry townhomes feature one-car garages, two to three bedrooms with large private owners’ suites, and open floor plans with large kitchens and family rooms. Unit sizes range from 1,630 square feet for a two-bedroom unit and 1,950 square feet for a three-bedroom unit. Rents range from $1,950 to $2,350 per month.
“There is a huge lack of supply of homes for the missing middle, creating a surplus of rental demand for product in this niche,” says Jacobi. “We already had a waiting list of 50 people before the community opened for leasing.”
