renter's market

Dallas and Houston lead nation among families who rent instead of own

Dallas ranks second nationally when it comes to the net change in renters with children.

HIgs2006/Getty Images

While Dallas is one of the most affordable cities in the country when it comes to cost of living and quality of life, there’s one place where life in the city might be coming up a bit short, according to one study: the soaring prices and shortage of entry-level, single-family homes.

Dallas-Fort Worth ranks second nationally when it comes to the net change in renters with children. In the 10 years between 2006 and 2016, an increase of 101,000 households were renting instead of owning. Houston comes in first; 107,000 more families were renting rather than owning during the same time period.

Nationally, in the decade between 2006 and 2016, the drop in the number of families with children who own their home has reached almost 3.6 million, while the same demographic living in rentals has increased by 1.9 million.

Texas isn’t alone in the trend. This study, released by real estate blog Rent Café, shows that families with children who are renting apartments is on the rise in the 30 largest U.S. metros, while ownership is declining.

The issue is simple supply and demand — and there isn’t enough supply on the single-family home side to satisfy the demand. Increasing prices in single family homes have put them out of reach for many, especially those looking for a first — or entry-level — home.

In Dallas, single-family home prices increased by 45 percent in the last five years, while rents have risen by 31 percent. In Houston, these changes are 30 percent vs. 25 percent, respectively. That means potential home owners find themselves apartment hunting instead.

Since 2006, 1.1 million new apartments were built nationally. In Dallas, 42 percent of new apartments built over the last dozen years were classified as family-sized (two or more bedrooms); in Houston, that percentage is 45 percent.

A number of factors have contributed to families having to reassess or put the American dream on hold. In addition to the numbers game of available housing stock at prices buyers can afford, there are also tighter lending rules, putting the kibosh on some families’ plans. Additionally, some of those renters may have been families who lost their homes in the wake of the recession and they’ve not been able to climb back on the property owning ladder.

Meanwhile, single-family home prices have shot up 75 percent faster than rental rates over the last five years.

Anna Land Buy

Cox Family sells 116 acres in Anna for mixed-use development

Courtesy photo

Anna, Texas

A major land sale in Anna is paving the way for new mixed-use development. According to a release, Frisco-based Rockhill Capital & Investments struck a deal with the Cox Family to acquire 116 acres at County Road 371 and SH-5, approximately two miles east of US-75.

Younger Partners Executive Managing Director John St. Clair, Vice President Tyler Hemenway, and Associate Davis Willoughby represented the seller in the transaction. The sales price was not disclosed.

Rockhill will sell fully entitled tracts of land to homebuilders, multifamily, and commercial developers.

The single-family portion will be built in phases with development of 325 single-family lots, says Rockhill Chief Development Officer Brent Libby in a statement.

“Construction will likely begin early in Q2 2025,” Libby said. “We’ve already sold 82 of the 116 acres to homebuilder Taylor Morrison and they should break ground first.”

The remaining acres are already being snapped up including 9.5 acres on SH 5 that is under contract to a commercial developer, and interest from a user/developer on the remaining 24 acres, which is zoned for multifamily.

The Cox Family owned the land for decades and had received multiple offers on the property over the years, but were never ready to sell.

“Ultimately, the family wanted to capitalize on the land market before unforeseen market factors took place,” said St. Clair of Younger Partners. “This deal took place at the right time with the right buyer.”

The acquisition nvolved a lengthy zoning process to acquire the land. Rockhill created a Public Improvement District (PID) on the single-family portion of the land, which helped the deal move forward.

Rockhill already has land holdings in nearby high-growth cities of Howe, Van Alstyne, and Sherman, and it ain't stopping here.

“We’ll continue to source and acquire land in the area where we can add value through entitlements, and either develop the property or hold it for some time and exit to another developer or end user,” Libby says.

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