The author is a Reuters Breakingviews columnist. The opinions expressed are his own.

By Stephen Gandel

NEW YORK, May 21 (Reuters Breakingviews) - Equity Residential’s $52 billion merger with AvalonBay creates a 180,000-unit landlord as high rates persist and Washington pushes supply. The lack of premium and meager cost savings suggest the deal is more about seeking shelter than rising opportunity for multifamily operators.

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CONTEXT NEWS

AvalonBay Communities and Equity Residential announced that they plan to merge in an all-stock deal on May 21. The merger would create the largest U.S. multifamily real-estate operator.

Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan and Wells Fargo served as financial advisors to AvalonBay. Morgan Stanley, Centerview Partners and Bank of America provided advice to Equity Residential.