We recently published a list of 10 Best Residential Real Estate Stocks To Buy. In this article, we are going to take a look at where Avalonbay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB) stands against other best residential real estate stocks to buy.

Home Buyers Have More Bargaining Power than Sellers, Says Economist

The rate hikes which started in March 2022 as a battle against inflation are coming to an end as the Federal Reserve finally decided to cut rates for the first time since 2020. The rate cuts were kicked off with a half-percentage point reduction on September 18. This long-awaited move lowered rates to about 4.875%, at the midpoint. With an optimistic view in mind about inflation cooling off, the big rate cut will be catering to the employment slowdown. The news just doesn’t end here since the officials have pointed to another half-point reduction before the year’s end.

For the housing market, the big rate cut could be taken as a signal from the Fed to reverse the mortgage lock-in effect but the extent of easing matters. While an aggressive reduction in rates will reduce financing costs, create an inventory of existing homes, and reduce pressure on home prices, a gradual reduction won’t be of much value for the homeowners who are holding on to their early-pandemic low mortgage rates. The anticipation of a rate cut at the September Fed meeting has brought down mortgage rates to as low as their lowest since February 2023. However, the dropping mortgage rates are a double-edged sword as they could potentially raise the demand so much thereby making home buying even harder.

In an interview with CNBC, Senior Economist Orphe Divounguy from Zillow emphasized the impact of rate cuts on housing affordability. Although affordability remains a challenge, the market is improving. In his opinion, the best time to act for home buyers is right now as the current scenario offers them a perfect entry point with more options and bargaining power being somewhat shifted from the sellers to the buyers. The number of active listings on the real estate platform has gone up by 22% since last year. Although short-term rates are expected to decline, longer-term rates like mortgage rates could remain at the current level. He expects more buyers than sellers in the market with improving affordability. Sellers will also be in good shape as well-priced and well-marketed homes are selling in just 20 days, according to company data.

With that being said, let’s move to the 10 best residential real estate stocks to buy.

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AvalonBay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB)

Number of Hedge Fund Holders: 34

Avalonbay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB) is a leading multifamily real estate investment trust that develops, redevelops, acquires, and manages apartment homes across 12 US states and Washington, DC. The company focuses on metropolitan areas that boast a vibrant quality of life, higher home prices, and strong employment growth.

Avalonbay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB) operates its apartment communities under four core brands including Avalon which focuses on upscale apartment living and high-end amenities, eaves by Avalon for the cost-conscious segment, Kanso which offers simplicity with moderate pricing, and AVA which is targeted at those in high energy, transit-served neighborhoods. Hence, the firm uses strong brand differentiation to target multiple customer groups within its extensive geographic footprint.

The firm occupies a leadership position in the multifamily housing sector. It owns a well-established portfolio of 281 apartment communities with more than 87,000 units. This portfolio is focused on coastal markets that have delivered solid same-store net operating income growth.  While Avalonbay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB) has an irreplaceable portfolio in established regions including New England, metro NY/NJ, Mid-Atlantic, Seattle, Northern, and Southern California, it is growing in other regions such as Raleigh-Durham, Southeast Florida, Denver, Dallas and Austin.

The company has also been benefitting from market conditions such as the strong inclination towards renting rather than buying a home and the low new supply in the firm’s suburban coastal markets. The company is also leveraging development capabilities to drive differentiated growth. Its development activity remains robust as it completed the development of 3 communities comprising 901 apartment homes during the three months ended June 30.

The unparalleled suburban coastal portfolio, superior competitive position among other multifamily residential REITs, and prevailing market dynamics make Avalonbay Communities, Inc. (NYSE:AVB) a good option to be considered among the best residential real estate stocks to buy. As of 2024’s second quarter, the stock is held by 34 hedge funds.

Overall, AVB ranks 8th on our list of 10 best residential real estate stocks to buy. While we acknowledge the potential of AVB as an investment, our conviction lies in the belief that some deeply undervalued AI stocks hold greater promise for delivering higher returns, and doing so within a shorter timeframe. If you are looking for a deeply undervalued AI stock that is more promising than AVB but that trades at less than 5 times its earnings, check out our report about the cheapest AI stock.

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Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.