Ossoff launches investigation into corporate takeover of Atlanta housing market

“I’m launching this investigation to get answers for Georgia families who are struggling to afford rent and homeownership,” Ossoff said in a brief statement.

The AJC reviewed four letters the Democratic senator has written to Main Street Renewal, Tricon Residential, Progress Residential and Invitation Homes.

Ossoff lays out the foundations of the investigation, which include attempting to unravel the ownership structure of corporate landlords, who often use aliases under multiple LLCs — making it difficult for residents seeking transparency and accountability.

Credit: AP

Credit: AP

He asks how many homes the companies own in the Atlanta area and in Georgia by county, including through joint ventures and other companies. The probe will seek data on how many foreclosed homes the companies purchased, the median price range of acquisitions and whether the companies get an advance look at home listings.

“Homeownership is the cornerstone of the American Dream,” the May 6 letter to Invitation Homes states. “Yet, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution has reported that families struggle to compete in the housing market against corporations like Invitation Homes, the nation’s largest landlord for single-family rental homes.”

The companies did not immediately respond to requests for comment though Progress Residential referred the AJC to industry group the National Rental Home Council.

The council’s CEO David Howard said a chronic lack of housing — not companies providing single-family homes for rent — is the problem.

“If we’re serious about making housing more accessible in Georgia, we need to stop pointing fingers and start expanding housing options,” he wrote in an email.

He said zoning rules and regulations had slowed construction, pushing prices higher, and that providers of single-family homes were helping to bridge the gap with safe and stable housing in desirable neighborhoods with good schools.

“NRHC member companies invest significantly in these communities — renovating properties to high standards, employing local contractors, and maintaining quality housing options that meet the needs of today’s families,” he added.

The AJC series found that corporate landlords of single-family homes often charge excessive and inappropriate fees, ignore maintenance issues, are not responsive to problems and evict tenants at higher rates than others.

Credit: arvin.temkar@ajc.com

Credit: arvin.temkar@ajc.com

Last year, the Government Accountability Office found that institutional investors held a 25% stake in the single-family rental market in metro Atlanta, an area the AJC investigation found was “ground zero” for the corporate takeover of single-family homes.

The AJC investigation found that since 2012, investors had bought up more than 65,000 single-family homes in 11 counties and that 11 companies each owned more than 1,000 homes.

In four out of five census tracts where investors acquired homes, at least 50 since 2021 were majority-minority communities. In 45% of those census areas, 90% of the population was made up of minority residents, according to the investigation.

Ossoff suggests his inquiry is grounded on the GAO and AJC’s findings.

In January 2024, Taylor Shelton, a housing expert and assistant professor in the Department of Geosciences at Georgia State, and Eric Seymour, assistant professor of urban planning at Rutgers University, published a study finding that just three companies — including Invitation Homes — had an 11% stake in single-family rental homes in five metro Atlanta counties of Fulton, Clayton, DeKalb, Gwinnett and Cobb.

Overall, the study, “Horizontal Holdings: Untangling the Networks of Corporate Landlords,” found they owned more than 19,000 homes through a web of corporate aliases.

“These companies own tens of thousands of properties in a relatively select set of neighborhoods, which allows them to exercise really significant market power over tenants and renters because they have such a large concentration of holdings in those neighborhoods,” Shelton told Georgia State University last year.

Ossoff cites those studies and the American Dream for Rent investigation, noting that as of March 2024, Invitation Homes owned more than 7,800 homes in metro Atlanta; Main Street Renewal, more than 5,700 homes in February 2023; Tricon Residential, 5,200 in February 2023; and Progress Residential, about 10,600 homes.

Credit: Hyosub.Shin@ajc.com

Credit: Hyosub.Shin@ajc.com

Last year, a federal court judge in Atlanta approved the Federal Trade Commission’s $48 million settlement with Invitation Homes, after the government accused the company of charging renters junk fees, withholding security deposits and undermining eviction protections during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The senator will look at fees the companies charge residents and whether the leases are clear and transparent. He wants information from the companies about whether deposits are improperly withheld.

Last year, another analysis by the Atlanta Regional Commission found seven corporations own more than 51,000 single-family rental homes in the Atlanta region, with Gwinnett having the most and Henry County the highest concentration of units.

Commission researcher Mike Carnathan told the AJC in December that rental homes owned by corporate landlords are a “relatively small percentage of total housing stock,” but added that investor ownership still has an impact on housing availability.

“Every house you take off the market through corporate investments is one less house that somebody could buy to become a homeowner and then begin that journey to generational wealth,” he said.