Cottonwood Residential understands Millennials and where they want to live. Few companies are better positioned to capture the real estate opportunity present in our Country’s largest segment of the population (Millennials have knocked off the Baby Boomers as our largest growing demographic at roughly 75 million). This generation is quite different than that of their parents: big life decisions like getting married and having kids are taking place later, working for multiple companies over one’s career is normal, and home ownership isn’t as important, at least not right now.
Many Millennials are asking the question, “Why buy when one could rent?” Many apartment buildings feature free amenities that would come at a significant cost for homeowners. These range from obviously visible perks like electric car charging ports, gyms, and movie screening rooms, to the subtle, such as concierge service and cell phone reception in all areas of the building, including the underground garage (landlines are almost obsolete for this generation). Millennials are drawn to the community and shared spaces in apartment buildings. With limited budgets in urban locales, including places where studio apartments can be smaller than 400 square feet, younger renters are enjoying common kitchens or coffee bars, libraries, and rec rooms. But the ultimate benefit of renting may arise from the flexibility of leaving for any reason, especially career reasons. Millennials tend to change jobs three times more often than their older counterparts and stay with the same employer for just three years on average, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. The homeownership rate is expected to continue to fall as this generation addicted to convenience chooses to rent.
Over the last decade, Cottonwood Residential has built one of the largest portfolios of Class A, amenity rich apartment portfolios in the country. They recently launched a new community-level brand crafting a new kind of customer experience with a premium level of service and amenities. Each community will carry the Cottonwood name alongside its own area-specific identifier. Emphasizing location within the new brand line allows Cottonwood to play to its strengths, especially with the class-A locations it incorporates. At Cottonwood Bayview, residents enjoy panoramic views of the Tampa Bay from their homes and rooftop terrace. Cottonwood Westside is ideally situated in the heart of Atlanta’s Westside neighborhood with prime access to the area’s finest shopping, dining, and entertainment. For more information on these communities, please visit CottonwoodBayview.com and CottonwoodWestside.com.
Cottonwood Residential has been a tremendous partner for South Coast as we’ve allocated to their portfolio over the last several years. These allocations have helped provide above average risk adjusted returns. We will be providing a performance overview as well as a discussion on future opportunities.
Please RSVP to join us for lunch on Thursday, June 22nd at 12:00 pm.