Mixed Signals on Improving Renter Quality - Rent Trends - Multifamily Executive Magazine

"In their recent third-quarter earnings calls, apartment REIT CEOs noted that as occupancies tighten and rents move up, something else encouraging is happening—the quality of residents is also improving.

For instance, Houston-based Camden Property Trust saw its average household income move up about 4.5 percent in its portfolio—rising from $62,000 to $65,000. The company’s rent-to-income ratio dropped from 18.5 percent to 18.1 percent. That improvement is striking, says Jay Harris, vice president of business services at Santa Ana, Calif.-based CoreLogic SafeRent, since the second quarter is usually when owners and managers see the best applicants come through their doors.

“The net-net result of that is that we end up with a more qualified resident as indicated by the household income and, really, a better ability to pay even in the face of raising rental rates,” said CEO Ric Campo in its third-quarter earnings conference call, transcribed by seekingalpha.com."

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