About Richard Campo
In a May 2024 interview, Richard Campo, CEO of Camden Property Trust, said that the rental market is "strong" and that rents are "coming down across the country." He attributed this to supply being at a "40-year high" and noted that rent growth has slowed from 13% in 2022 to an expected 1% to 1.5% in 2024. Campo stated that it is "60% cheaper to rent than buy a home" and that rent currently accounts for 19% of tenants' income, which he described as "very low."
Campo also discussed a decline in new construction, saying development starts fell 53% from a year ago due to higher capital costs. He predicted that annual construction would drop from 500,000 units to below 200,000 units the following year. Campo stated that this would lead to rent stabilization in the near term but could result in "outsized rent growth" in 2026 through 2028 if the economy experiences a soft landing.
Source: AI-verified profile updated from Richard Campo's recent appearances.
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Transcript (6 segments)
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Interviewer0:12
America, is there any relief in sight for people looking to find some kind of rent stabilization in the coming months and years?
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Richard Campo0:20
Thanks, Dom. There is, absolutely. When you think about single-family and multi-family rentals, it is a strong market, no question about it. Rents are coming down across the country. We had the massive demand push that happened in 2021 and 2022. That backed off in 2023 a bit and 2024. The real story is supply. Supply is at a 40-year high right now. The interesting thing is a lot of people thought the rental market would collapse. Good news for our company and other multi-family companies is growth in 2024. That is a significant slowdown. It is helpful for renters and helpful for the Fed. The good news is the CPI will continue to fall in terms of the rental perspective with the rents slowing. It is a positive thing for stocks and Camden.
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Interviewer1:37
Ric, is it safe to say with the housing market the way it is right now, with interest rates kind of moving the way they have been ever since the Great Financial Crisis and now with the housing dynamic, there's a secular trend toward renting for Americans versus owning?
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Richard Campo2:11
Because of the doubling of interest rates, obviously. What is happening is it is a lot cheaper to rent. It is 60% cheaper to rent than buy a home. It will change as interest rates come down. From the affordability perspective with people pinched on their budgets means it is cheaper to rent than own a home. Today, our rent income is at one of the lowest percentages. We're at 19% of people's income to pay rent which is very low. Usually, it's in the high 20s. It's in a very affordable product today relative to what you do.
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Interviewer3:11
How is that changing your growth plans for the coming quarters and years?
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Richard Campo3:15
The interest rates have definitely -- the interesting thing about it is the low interest rates and sort of easy money in the last three years fueled the supply boom. Now what is happening is the reverse is happening. Cost of capital has gone up so high for developers that developments have started to fall. They fell 53% from a year ago. Most folks believe we're going to go to post-financial crisis lows on new construction. To put those numbers in perspective, we are building 500,000 units annually. That will drop over 200,000. It has been stopped, you will have an interesting market. You will have a stabilization of rents in the low 1% growth area which is good for CPI and good for the Fed and long-term interest rates, but what will happen in 2026 and 2027 and 2028, you have a soft landing and you end up with a strong economic scenario that happens in the out years and you have outsized rent growth and we are...
