Dearth of rental homes a boon for big landlords

Los Angeles

CORPORATE landlords are benefiting from the worst US rental-housing shortage in more than a decade as construction lags behind demand and more Americans opt to lease rather than buy.

There's an undersupply of single-family houses and apartments to rent for the first time since 2001, according to an analysis by Frank Nothaft, chief economist at mortgage buyer Freddie Mac, based on available inventory and historic vacancy rates. The deficit in the third quarter was about 350,000, the most in records dating back 14 years.