Key Insights into the Single-Family Rental Industry
Industry Leaders Conference, CPI Inflation, SFR Solar Panel Adoption
by David Howard
The National Rental Home Council (NRHC) serves as the trade association for the single-family rental (SFR) home industry. NRHC members include owner-operators, builders, vendors, and service providers of single-family rental homes across the country.
As part of our mission to provide market research and other tools to guide members through the ever-evolving housing market landscape, this article contains key insights.
NRHC Industry Leaders Conference
First off, thank you to everyone who attended and supported the NRHC Industry Leaders Conference in Orlando. We were thrilled with the turnout and participation. The final tally shows we had an attendance of over 500, a notable increase from the prior year’s event in Houston.
Our goal with the Industry Leaders Conference is to ensure executives and senior leaders from across the single-family rental housing industry are able to come together to discuss, inform, and provide direction on the issues, opportunities, and challenges at the forefront of today’s housing market. Whether in large session discussions, small gatherings, or private meetings, we want to facilitate the sharing of content and building of connections in order to move the industry forward.
We were also pleased to welcome Florida Governor Ron DeSantis to this year’s conference. The Governor provided remarks on a range of important topics and then joined me for a more informal ‘fireside chat’ where he shared his thoughts on housing and economic development issues.
CPI Inflation
The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) inflation report signaled some bright news on inflation in the pre-tariff economy. The BLS reported that headline CPI, which includes food and energy, fell 0.1% in March on a seasonally adjusted basis, mainly due to a 6.3% drop in gasoline prices. Core CPI (which excludes food and energy) rose 0.1% in March, following a 0.2% increase in February.
Headline and core inflation grew 2.4% and 2.8% year-over-year, respectively, marking their slowest annual growth rates since February 2021. Shelter costs continue to hold up progress on reducing overall inflation, growing 4.0% annually—much higher than the 2015–2019 average.
Despite the positive inflation data, interest rate expectations remained relatively unchanged, according to CME Group data. Investors still mostly expect the Fed to hold steady at its meeting next month, with the next rate cut anticipated in June.
SFR Solar Panel Adoption
According to a recent analysis by Arbor Realty Trust and Chandan Economics, solar panel usage in rental properties is accelerating. Across the rental sector, solar panel adoption has grown by 428% between 2010 and 2023. However, rental occupied homes have lagged significantly behind owner-occupied homes, which have seen solar usage rates increase by 1228% over the same period.
Across all rental property types, solar adoption rates are highest in single-family properties. Despite single-family rentals (SFR) accounting for only about one-third of all renter households, the sector accounted for 53.2% of solar-equipped units.
The analysis notes that several soft and hard incentives could boost solar adoption in single-family rentals in the years ahead. In addition to falling installation costs and a growing nexus of federal, state, and local tax credits, solar-equipped single-family rental properties achieve rents that are nearly 60% higher than those of non-solar units.
