Younger adults are finding it harder to move out, buy homes, and stretch pay packets that are already under pressure. That is feeding into demand for rental housing and build to rent projects in very different ways, from longer stays in rented properties to delayed household formation. For investors, this creates both potential opportunities and risks across rental focused real estate stocks that are exposed to these trends. This article explains how the current housing squeeze connects to listed rental housing businesses and identifies 3 stocks from the screener that appear most directly tied to this story.

Cedar Woods Properties (ASX:CWP)

Overview: Cedar Woods Properties is an Australian property developer that acquires land and builds housing lots, townhouses, apartments and some commercial space across Western Australia, South Australia, Victoria and Queensland, then sells these projects to owner occupiers and investors.

Operations: Cedar Woods Properties generates A$544.9 million of revenue from property development and investment activities, all within Australia.

Market Cap: A$583.6 million

For investors following the rental housing theme, Cedar Woods Properties sits in the middle of Australia’s chronic housing shortage, with masterplanned communities and build to rent style projects that are closely tied to tight vacancy rates and rising rents. Analysts point to high quality earnings, a solid presales pipeline and a relatively low P/E multiple, yet there are clear pressure points such as reliance on external debt, a patchy dividend record and exposure to construction costs and local policy shifts. The company’s focus on integrated, often sustainability focused projects, plus partnerships with institutional capital, could be important in this cycle. The key consideration is how those strengths balance against funding and execution risk over the next few years.

Cedar Woods Properties sits at the crossroads of tight vacancies, rising rents and institutional capital; yet the real story may be hiding in its 5 key rewards and 1 important warning sign

Modiv Industrial (MDV)

Overview: Modiv Industrial is an internally managed US REIT that owns single tenant industrial manufacturing properties, focusing on long term net leases to companies that keep supply chains running.

Operations: Modiv Industrial generates US$47.0 million of revenue from partnership status real estate, all from properties in the United States.

Market Cap: US$210.6 million

Modiv Industrial sits in the path of demand for rental focused real estate, with a portfolio of net lease industrial assets benefiting from tenants that still need critical facilities even as younger households delay buying homes. The stock currently trades at a discount to an estimate of its future cash flow value. However, it also carries trade offs, including current losses, a dividend that is not fully covered by earnings and a capital structure entirely reliant on external borrowing. In addition, analysts expect earnings to change over time, and a proposed US$240 million all stock acquisition by Global Net Lease, with an implied premium to the recent share price, adds another layer to the story that investors following Modiv Industrial may want to understand in detail.

Modiv Industrial’s proposed all stock takeover and current discount to estimated cash flows hint at a story investors may be underestimating. Explore the full thesis, including key balance sheet and earnings trade offs, in the analysis report for Modiv Industrial

Real Matters (TSX:REAL)

Overview: Real Matters is a Canadian technology based real estate services company that runs appraisal, title and closing platforms used by lenders and insurers to process mortgages and property transactions in the U.S. and Canada.

Operations: Real Matters generates about $132.4 million from U.S. Appraisal, $37.6 million from Canada and $15.2 million from U.S. Title services.

Market Cap: CA$369.2 million

Real Matters sits in an interesting spot for rental and housing focused investors because it sells the “picks and shovels” that keep mortgage and property workflows moving, even when ownership trends are under pressure. The company has no debt, a technology heavy platform that can handle higher volumes without matching cost increases, and recent quarters show pockets of growth in U.S. Title and Canada alongside a return to quarterly profit in Q2 2026. On the flip side, Real Matters still depends heavily on a small group of large U.S. lenders and on a mortgage market that has seen weak purchase activity. How those strengths and pressures net out as housing affordability stays stretched is the key question for investors sizing up Real Matters today.

Real Matters’ asset light model and return to quarterly profit may be obscuring where the real upside lies. See how the market’s expectations compare with the analyst forecasts for Real Matters

The three stocks in this article are only a starting point, and the full screener has surfaced 29 more companies with equally compelling rental housing and build to rent stories that you can review in the Rental Housing and Build-to-Rent Real Estate screener. Use Simply Wall St to identify and analyze the specific catalysts and narratives that matter to you so you can focus on the highest conviction ideas across this theme.

Take Control of Your Investment Journey

If Modiv Industrial or any of these companies sound like a great opportunity, register for FREE with Simply Wall St and add your companies to a Watchlist to monitor the share price against the fair value the ideal entry point. Once you've made your move, manage your holdings with our Portfolio Command Center that filters out the noise to deliver only the most critical, actionable updates. Throughout your journey, our Community allows you to filter the best ideas from thousands of investor perspectives. By uncovering hidden catalysts and risks early, you'll accelerate your decision-making and stay one step ahead of the market.

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This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.