RentCafe’s annual build-to-rent report revealed that the BTR sector has set a record high for the fifth consecutive year and Phoenix leads the nation in build-to-rent completions.

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Specifically, in 2023, a staggering 27,400 units were added to the market nationally, up 75% compared to the year prior. And the momentum shows no signs of slowing down, as an astounding 45,000 units are under construction this year alone – more than ever before. 

Phoenix is the reigning metro with 4,030 single-family homes for rent opening their doors in 2023 alone, a 10-year high and an impressive 164% growth compared to 2022. What’s more, Phoenix also boasts the newest build-to-rent stock and the largest inventory in America. And the expansion doesn’t stop here: A record number of homes for rent are in the pipeline. 

Here are the highlights: 

  • Phoenix has been delivering hundreds of build-to-rent homes for 8 years in a row, yet constructions really took off post-pandemic: 75% of Phoenix’s BTR current stock was completed between 2019-2023. Specifically, a staggering 9,345 units in just 5 years. 
     
  • Phoenix’s ambitious plan to reach 20,000 units in the near future: 7,236 homes are set to be completed by the end of 2026, to add to the metro’s current inventory of 12,357 homes. 
     
  • To put things in perspective, runner-up Dallas doesn’t even come close to the BTR frenzy in Phoenix. Between 2019 and 2023, Dallasrenewed its stock with 6,512 units (out of which 2,694 opened doors in 2023). This helped the metro’s inventory surpass 10,000 units (10,554 to be exact), while 6,481 are under construction. 

Other interesting findings: 

  • Thirty-two markets embraced build-to-rent only in the last five years. Huntsville, AL, stands out because this adaptation of the American Dream led to an impressive momentum here: Huntsville aims to build nearly 2,500 more homes for rent in the near future, that’s 10 times more than its current stock (262 units) and the 4th biggest pipeline in the nation. 
     
  • Fourteen out of the 20 biggest BTR builders in 2023 saw a 10-year high. For example, Atlanta completed 1,981 units, ranking 3rd for homes for rent deliveries last year. That’s double the number of homes completed by Austin, TX (840 units) which comes 4th.  
     
  • 41% of the total number of build-to-rent homes (or about 68,000 units) were completed in the last five years. Charlotte, NC, witnessed a staggering 1,115% increase in inventory, delivering 2,247 units between 2019 and 2023, compared to the 185 units that comprised its stock up until then.