Real Estate & Construction
The State of the Delaware Multifamily Industry A snapshot of operations, investments, and legislation BY KEVIN M. WOLFGANG
Operational Overview Like most industries, COVID-19 has had a significant impact, including
The rental assistance funds delivered through this program have been a critical lifeline for tenants and landlords as the industry navigates the pandemic.
staffing/vendor issues, supply chain disruptions, and challenging regulatory
Through the past 24 months, tenants remained in their apartment homes at
mandates (such as eviction moratoriums). However, the worst fears of the
record levels, resulting in extremely low tenant turn-over and high occupancy
industry have not come to fruition. This is primarily a result of a massive
levels. This underscores the reality that Delaware needs more affordable rental
amount of federal money provided to states for rental assistance to those at or
housing options and that direct financial rental assistance for tenants is the
below 80 percent of their county’s area median income that incurred financial
most efficient way to limit evictions. However, there is concern that the end
hardship because of the pandemic and were in danger of losing their homes.
of DEHAP funding and pent-up turnover demand will result in a significant
The money is distributed through the Delaware Housing Assistance Program
operational downturn in the future.
(DEHAP), administered by the Delaware State Housing Authority (DSHA). Although the administration of the program has had significant “bumps in the road”, DSHA deserves credit for essentially developing this program overnight
Investment Overview The multifamily industry continues to be extremely attractive to investors
and negotiating the myriad of challenges that come with administering a
who view real estate as a stable and safe place to be in an inflationary and
program of this magnitude.
low-rate environment. Nationally, private equity investors now have a total of
40
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| DELAWARE BUSINESS
