Multigenerational Housing | Q&A with Scott Choppin of Urban Pacific

Multigenerational housing—in which two or more adult generations of a family live together—is making a comeback. In 2020, 7.2% of all American households were multigenerational, an 18% increase from 2010. While some of this is happening out of economic necessity, for other households—particularly immigrant families—multigenerational living is a preference.

While multigenerational housing remains off the radar of institutional real estate investors, some developers are having tremendous success building homes for multigenerational households. Today, we’ll speak with Scott Choppin, CEO of Urban Pacific, a leading developer of multigenerational projects. 

Over the past six years, Choppin has built over 500 units of multigenerational housing across 15 projects. By differentiating and tackling an underserved and poorly-understood market, Choppin has consistently achieved 20%+ IRRs and 7%+ unlevered yields in the greater Los Angeles market.

Today’s Q&A with Choppin covers:

• What multigenerational housing is and who it serves;
• How Urban Pacific began addressing this unique market;
• Typical investors and return expectations;
• Navigating lenders, appraisals, and exits;
• Challenges and pitfalls of building multigenerational housing.

Read on for more…