‘Built-for-rent’: New 206-home community is coming to Wendell. What to know.
A new community is bringing 206 “built-for-rent” homes to the fast-growing satellite town of Wendell, east of Raleigh.
Construction has begun on Leo at Wendell, a “cottage-style” gated community on almost 20 acres at 313 Old Battle Bridge Rd., about 16 miles east of downtown.
Miami-based real estate investor Advenir Azora has partnered with PCCP to develop the project.
Built-for-rent homes are detached (more often, a complex of homes) built specifically for long-term renters who can’t afford — or don’t want to — take on the risks of homeownership. Amid rising housing costs, demand has surged for this type of housing in recent years, both in North Carolina and nationally.
Among the perks: no down payment, access to amenities and freedom from maintenance.
“LEO at Wendell stands as a testament to our confidence in the macro fundamentals supporting built-for-rent,” said Advenir’s Matt Vecchitto, in a news release.
Leo at Wendell will include a mix of one- and two-bedroom duplexes, two-bedroom cottages, and two- and three-bedroom townhomes, all with private fenced yards. The average will be around 1,140 square feet, the developers said.
Other offerings: a 2,500-square-foot clubhouse; a 1,500-square-foot gym; a pool and a pickleball court. Parks, walking trails, playgrounds, gazebos and dog parks will also be scattered throughout the development.
First units are expected to deliver in December 2025.
The developers declined to share what they plan to charge for rent.
Though not an exact comparison, Advenir at Adams Farm is an apartment community managed by Advenir in Guilford County. Monthly rent ranges from $1,160 to $1,925, according to its website.
The rise of built-for-rent
Nationally, nearly 27,500 build-to-rent homes were completed in 2023, “an all-time high,” according to the latest data from RentCafe.
That’s 75% more than the year before and triple the number in 2021, the report found.
Raleigh is an “emerging build-for-rent market,” with 743 new single-family homes in 2023 and 355 more under construction, the report said. The report did not include other metro areas in the the Triangle.
Other communities include the soon-to open Amavi Brier Creek in eastern Durham County and Alister Lake Lynn in Raleigh.
As land becomes more expensive, places in the outskirts, like Wendell, are increasingly attractive to investors.
Settled in the 1850s by tobacco farmers, the once-sleepy Wendell is one of the region’s fastest-growing towns in North Carolina. Its population grew nearly 16%, to 11,570, from 2021 to 2022, census data found. Today, it’s closer to 14,440.
It’s “an affluent, desirable location,” said Andrew Barbakoff with PCCP. “It’s poised to continue experiencing strong job and population growth.”
In October, the median sale price was $386,950, according to the latest data from Redfin.
This story was originally published November 13, 2024 at 11:59 AM with the headline "‘Built-for-rent’: New 206-home community is coming to Wendell. What to know.."
