James November-December 2024 web - Flipbook - Page 34
that develop and occur off the property in areas that the owner has no
control over.
Affordable properties are being
especially burdened by this crisis.
Providers of naturally occurring and
subsidized affordable housing are
seeing insurance coverage denials at
an alarming rate. Affordable providers often operate properties in areas
where insurance carriers refuse to provide coverage due to real or perceived
higher crime rates or previous claims
on nearby properties. We need relief
now to avoid losing critical affordable
housing stock.
JAMES There continues to be calls
nationally and here in Georgia to enact
rent control to address housing affordability. What is the industry’s current
position on these types of policy
measures?
Decades of economic research
and evidence clearly show that rent
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JAMES
caps have an adverse effect on housing affordability. Rent control measures have been proven to not benefit
low-income renters, create extreme
supply constraints, resulting in deferred maintenance on existing and
aging properties, and ultimately drives
housing providers and much needed
investment out of the market.
If a price cap on rent is put in
place, with no equal controls on the
growing costs to own and manage
rental housing such as property taxes,
building maintenance and insurance,
the economics will always be out
of balance. You can look to St. Paul,
Minnesota where voters passed a
ballot measure to enact rent control
in 2022, and residential development
immediately halted. Now, this fall, the
Mayor of St. Paul proposed an initiative to roll back much of the policy to
try to encourage housing providers
and investment to come back to the
city. Georgia cannot afford for this to
happen here.
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What market trends are you
seeing for the future of Georgia’s rental
housing industry?
JAMES
Despite a softer market in
2023-2024 for most properties, Georgia’s long-term potential for population
growth, job growth, and subsequent
multifamily demand remains strong.
Our industry is dealing with a historic
wave of new property supply that was
started post-Covid, which is resulting
in many area properties dealing with
an extended period of elevated vacancy and even declining rents. This ‘softness’ only heightens the cost increases
that our industry has faced, particularly with skyrocketing insurance rates
and on-going eviction delays.
Georgia is a strong market. It is a
desirable place to live, but we may be
losing our claim as a desirable place
to do business. We must address the
issue of lawsuit abuse in our state now
in order to continue to attract investment and growth in our housing stock.
NIXON
