Learnings From Operational Build To Rent

About the report:

• In 2023 CBRE New Zealand undertook detailed qualitative interviews with BTR owners, developers, and managers, to gather data and metrics around various aspects of operational build to rent.
• Nine buildings across Auckland, Wellington, and Queenstown were captured, representing around 17% of national stock.
• The results cover carparking, construction, let up, occupancy, management, rents, lease terms, resident profiles, returns, services and amenities, pets, furnishings, and future intentions.

Key insights:

• The survey demonstrates that there is a wide variety of products, influenced to an extent by their location. Low vacancy indicates that developers have been successful in identifying market needs so far.
• BTR owners fall into two camps. For some, everything is done in house which allows greater control and establishment of a strong brand. For others, the focus is on building scale with non-core business activities outsourced.
• There is a wide range of yields, driven by the existence (or lack of) rental premiums, and the nature of the build being typical/standard housing product or optimised for build to rent.