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Rental properties across the metro have become a hot commodity for out-of-state investors, real estate and housing officials tell Axios.

Why it matters: It's a factor in higher area rents, advocates for low-income families contend, though some local realtors say the investments contribute to the local economy and can lead to property improvements.

What's happening: A nearly $57 million purchase of six local apartment complexes by the New York investment firm Spruce Properties in late 2020 sparked a metro "investment craze," according to Rockval, a Florida-based commercial real estate services firm.

Rockval's marketing materials claim that the 507-unit deal — which included apartments in Ankeny, Polk City and Waukee — was the first time DSM had seen Wall Street money enter the housing market.

Zoom in: Metro multifamily property sales increased from $225M in 2020 to a peak of over $500M in 2021, according to Rockval.

State of play: DSM rents for a two-bedroom apartment are up 21% year-over-year — roughly $190 a month — to a median of $1,090, according to recent data from rentals site Zumper.

Meanwhile, nearly 15,000 families across the state are "very likely" to be evicted from their homes in the next two months, according to a May Household Pulse Survey from the U.S. Census Bureau.

What they're saying: Rents generally increase but improvements to apartments purchased by out-of-state investors "may or may not" happen, Angie Arthur, director of Homeward — a group coordinating homeless prevention efforts in Polk County — tells Axios.

The other side: While more assistance is needed to develop affordable housing options, nonprofit groups that help plan and finance projects like the Polk County Housing Trust Fund alleviate metro problems, Kevin Crowley, a commercial manager at NAI Iowa Realty, tells Axios.

The big picture: Out-of-state investors are being linked with recent higher rents and evictions across the U.S., including some companies that own thousands of single-family homes.

An investment group lost 3,200 apartment units to foreclosure last month in Houston, Texas, in a situation linked with surging interest rates, the Wall Street Journal reports.

Out-of-state landlords seize the Des Moines metro

An influx of investments factor into higher area rents.

Illustration of apartment doorbells with an intercom shaped like a dollar sign.

Rental properties across the metro have become a hot commodity for out-of-state investors, real estate and housing officials tell Axios.Why it matters: It&#x27;s a factor in higher area rents, advocates for low-income families contend, though some local realtors say the investments contribute to the local economy and can lead to property improvements.

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