Did you know that millennials (those between 19 and 35 years of age) have surpassed the baby boomers (those between 52 and 70 years of age) in population? It's estimated that the millennials comprise 75.5 million Americans while the boomers have 72.9 million. I don't want to sound like a sore loser, but being a boomer, I've sort of gotten use to being on top, so I'm not taking this news really well. Never-the-less us boomers are still having an influence on the real estate market.

Homeownership rates have declined since the 2014 all-time high of 67.3 percent, to 2015's rate of 62.2 percent. This likely is some of the reason for the country's rental boom, which per the Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies, is up by 9 million between 2005 and 2015. This is the largest increase over any 10-year period.

Much of this demand is fueled by young millennials and aging baby boomers for somewhat different reasons. The millennials are having a hard time getting into a first home because of a chronic shortage of inventory and the resulting increase in prices, not to mention their student debt. The baby boomers are looking to downsize and eliminate the responsibility of owning a home. In addition, the stigma that was attached to non-home ownership that developed after the housing boom following World War II, has pretty much vanished. It's no longer a badge of honor to own a home; people are just as fulfilled renting a home as owning one.

Recognizing this trend, property developers are attempting to fill the needs of this wave of new renters. They have created a unique concept by constructing new rental communities that resemble traditional single-family housing communities. They offer amenities like pools, fitness centers and walking trails while providing the maintenance, lawn care and leasing arrangements.

Unlike conventional apartment complexes, single-family rental communities are attractive because of the additional space and neighborhood style culture that most Americans outside of major urban areas are accustomed to. Millennials love the lack of no long term commitment while they may be building their careers, allowing them to take advantage of job opportunities outside of their area without the hassle and financial impact of owning their own home.

Investors and builders are testing out new rental home communities across the country with positive results. Lennar Corp., which has housing communities in Florida, built one in Nevada, but except for over 55 communities, so far I haven't found any in Florida. The Sunshine State is the ideal place to build single-family rental communities. We have both the space as well as the millennials and baby boomers.

If you're a renter and want to live in either Manhattan or Brooklyn this is the time to find a bargain, relatively speaking. Rental rates for larger two- or three-bedroom apartments have dropped because of overbuilding in New York City. In Manhattan, the median price for a three-bedroom apartment dropped almost 7 percent to $5,500 a month and in Brooklyn the median for a three-bedroom dropped almost 8 percent to $3,318.

And in case you didn't know, Generation Z, which I never even heard of, have surpassed the millennials and the baby boomers. Generation Zs are 18 years of age and younger, too young to care about real estate, and are 77.9 million strong, which of course makes sense since their parents are millennials. Bottom line is whatever generation you are, choose what's best for you.