Throughout the spring semester I had the opportunity to work as an undergraduate researcher for the Rental Property Research Consortium at Iowa State University, under the supervision of Dr. Jane Rongerude. Coming out of COVID-19, the consortium was created in order to learn about Residential Rental Property Owners’ (RRPOs) responses to natural disasters, however since 2020 our study has expanded to gain a holistic understanding of the way RRPOs run their business. This year, our study surveyed residential rental property owners in 9 major cities across the country; Austin TX, Houston TX, Dallas TX, New Orleans LA, Miami FL, Tampa, FL, Minneapolis, MN, Cleveland OH, and Des Moines IA. These cities were selected based on their unique risks related to natural disasters and their responses to public health crises like COVID-19, allowing us to learn more about RRPOs’ responses to disaster situations.
As part of the research team, I reached out to industry partners like local chapters of the National Apartment Association, helped send out surveys, and entered survey results into our database. I wanted to share here what I’ve been able to learn about the practices of RRPOs through my work, as I’ve gotten some insight into the psychology and challenges they often face in their businesses. Local markets shift with city policies, and RRPOs often come into conflict with city policies over the course of their careers. Increasing costs from property taxes, real estate taxes, and insurance rates can make the business more volatile. On top of this, many RRPOs report that since the COVID-19 pandemic, city policies have shifted for the protection of tenants. There is a tension between protecting tenants and their right to shelter in the face of natural disaster and the ability of residential rental property owners to run their businesses.
On the note of natural disasters, many RRPOs are knowledgeable about the site of their property and the presence of natural hazards in their city and many prepare for natural disaster events. They often take precautionary measures such as hazard insurance or making arrangements with tenants before a natural disaster occurs, and this can help to limit their loss in the face of a natural disaster. Despite this, if an RRPO doesn’t take precautionary steps or if the damage is greater than they planned for, they report little support or relief from cities in the face of losses they experience.
There is much more I’ve learned that I wish I could share today, however I hope that through our research we can understand ways to make rental housing a more equitable business for both rental property owners and their residents. I look forward to the future of my research in housing and city planning!