Atlanta Developer Jim Jacobi has formed Parkland Residential, a new homebuilding company focused on creating build-to-rent communities. Jacobi is well-known in the Atlanta real estate market as president of Parkland Communities Inc., a company focused on developing communities for local, regional and national home builders.

Parkland Residential will focus on the underserved missing middle market. The concept of missing middle is defined by John Hunt, principal with MarketNsight, as a single-family home located alongside what looks like a single-family residence but is really a duplex, quad, eightplex or more.

“This building strategy provides diverse housing choices and generates enough density to support transit and local amenities such as restaurants, bars, coffee shops, boutiques and more,” Hunt said. “Unfortunately, it is illegal in most cities today due to restrictive zoning.”

“I realized there was a significant opportunity to provide a solution to the missing middle housing problem,” Jacobi said. “With this in mind, I launched Parkland Residential, a new company focused solely on build-to-rent communities.

“Our strategy is the opposite of the typical exurban rental communities. We find infill redevelopment opportunities where traditional apartments are unwelcome and rezone it as a build-to-rent community, thus helping satisfy the missing middle housing demand,” Jacobi said.

Parkland Residential recently broke ground at Parkland Springs, its first build-to-rent community, and has a second community already in the works. Prior to breaking ground on Parkland Springs, the commercially zoned property was rezoned for a unique 58-stacked townhome community located at 1510 Duluth Highway in Lawrenceville, Georgia in the highly coveted Peachtree Ridge High School district. This unique community was creatively designed using stacked townhomes with rear-entry garages, an abundance of park space and each home facing a park, green or street.

Missing middle housing goes hand in hand with affordable housing. Many consumers want to live near work but cannot afford too. Having other options for housing is important. Not all rentals have to be apartments.

“We analyze data to find holes are in the market and that is where we pursue land opportunities,” Jacobi said. “For instance, three years ago we could tell Dacula was overlooked, so we started looking for land in that area and secured two of the best land parcels in Dacula.”

Parkland Residential is a build-to-rent home builder based in metro Atlanta. With a goal of providing affordable missing middle housing in locations where consumers want to live, Parkland Residential plans to build several build-to-rent communities over the next several years.

Parkland Residential’s sister company is Parkland Communities, Inc. is a privately-owned multifaceted real estate development and investment firm specializing in residential properties. With over 20 years of experience in the industry, Parkland Communities Inc. uses the latest market data, technology and established relationships to strategically secure new development opportunities in Atlanta’s most desirable locations. The company’s hands-on philosophy has made it a proven leader in the industry with a trusted reputation among elected officials, municipal staff, neighborhood associations, bankers and home builders.

For more information on Parkland Communities, visit www.ParklandCo.com.

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