HUNTSVILLE — Apartments, condos, duplexes and single-family homes for rent are popping up like cotton did around the Huntsville area.
Well, actually, the growth in build-to-rent housing is exploding like some of the tests on Redstone Arsenal to the impact of a staggering 1,368% increase in 2024 over 2019.
Yes. One thousand three hundred and sixty-eight percent!
To that end, Huntsville ranks No. 7 in the country for new build-to-rent construction, according to a recent report.
The latest Point2Homes Build-to-Rent report said Huntsville added 1,098 new single-family rentals in 2024 — an impressive 255% year-over-year inventory increase.
And, the reason is simple.
“Huntsville’s strong job market and steady economic growth, which attract more and more people to the area, are the main factors creating demand and pushing growth in the housing sector,” said Andra Hopulele, the author of the report. “In fact, according to the U.S. Census latest numbers, Huntsville was the 15th fastest growing metro in the country in 2024.
“It has overtaken Birmingham, becoming Alabama’s largest city after adding about 13,600 people in 2024, more than any other Alabama metro.”
The report said Huntsville joins metros such as Charlotte,N.C.; Jacksonville, Fla.; Columbus, Ohio; and Tampa, Fla., in breaking the 1,000-unit threshold for 2024 — a clear sign of widespread momentum in the build-to-rent sector across the country.
“Faced with rising home prices and the burden of student debt, Millennials and especially Gen Z are showing a stronger preference for renting over buying, and single-family rentals in build-to-rent communities are well-suited to young families and remote workers’ need for space, offering flexibility, mobility, and access to modern amenities,” Hopulele said. “Also, as urban centers grow more crowded and costly, many are turning to the suburbs in search of more space and, of course, affordability.”
Over the past five years, Huntsville added 1,505 new BTR homes, increasing its single-family rentals inventory by 1,368% compared to 2019 which saw just 110 BTR homes built. The increase is one of the steepest growth rates of any of the metros analyzed.
And there’s no sign the growth will slow, the report said.
The entire BTR sector reached a historic high with 39,000 new units completed in 2024, a 15.5% increase from 2023 and ten times higher than 2015. This expansion is set to continue, with nearly 110,000 single-family rental homes currently in the pipeline across the country.
Huntsville will remain a key player, with 2,005 additional homes planned or under construction.
Don’t miss out! Subscribe to our email newsletter to have all our smart stories delivered to your inbox.
