Industry Perspectives on Improving Rental Housing Access

Industry Perspectives on Improving Rental Housing Access

Innovations that improve the rental experience can also help improve future access to homeownership.

For tenants, finding a rental unit that fits their desired budget, location, size, and other requirements can be a burdensome and often ineffective process. To share innovative private-sector approaches to accessing rental housing, the Bipartisan Policy Center (BPC) hosted "Housing Innovators: Modernizing Access to Rental Housing," a virtual discussion panel, on January 27, 2026. Panelists included Atticus LeBlanc, chief executive officer of PadSplit; Alana Intrieri Outlaw, public policy manager for Zillow Group; and Sipho Simela, founder and chief executive officer of Matrix Rental Solutions. Kristen Klurfield, associate director for housing at BPC, moderated the discussion.

Working Toward Innovation

The panelists represent organizations working to improve the rental process for both would-be tenants and landlords and expand access for renters with and without vouchers. Outlaw shared that Zillow is focused on creating a simplified rental process that empowers renters with information. For example, Zillow's platform allows customers to apply for multiple apartments with a single application. For $35 (compared with the average rental application fee of $50 for a single unit), renters can use one application to apply to apartments listed through Zillow's Rental Manager tool for 30 days. Zillow's listings include complete rental and fee costs, so customers have a more complete picture of housing costs that accounts for rent plus any mandatory monthly nonrent fees.

Simela described a similar flat-fee common application feature from Matrix that further streamlines the process through a one-time screening and verification process across multiple rental applications for units rented through the Matrix network. Because Matrix customers typically submit an average of 3.1 applications in their apartment search, the single fee can reduce moving costs. The tenant screening tool has also improved the rental process, with Matrix offering landlords a more holistic look into a prospective tenant's ability to make timely rental payments. Simela described how legacy systems tend to use blunt measures — overweighting credit scores, for example — whereas modern technology can better account for people with nontraditional income sources (including voucher holders), hourly or gig workers, or caregivers. This approach improves access to rental housing by assessing tenants' ability to pay in a way outdated models cannot.

Taking a different approach, PadSplit leverages unused, furnished spare bedrooms in privately owned homes to increase access to housing (by effectively increasing housing supply) and reduce costs to renters. PadSplit renters are disproportionately low-income, with an average annual income of approximately $30,000. PadSplit currently operates approximately 30,000 units across 31 states, and LeBlanc reports that a PadSplit rental represents an average monthly savings of $300, or 12 percent of the yearly income of the average PadSplit renter.

Innovators in property technology for renters are creating alternatives to legacy systems while ensuring that these new technologies are adopted safely and in compliance with housing regulations. For example, Klurfield asked the panelists about the risks and benefits that artificial intelligence (AI) systems might pose when applied to housing. Simela discussed how Matrix has used AI technology to streamline the processing of the numerous documents involved in income verification — including bank statements, paystubs, and voucher documents — creating consistent output that reduces the risk of error. At the same time, Simela stressed that Matrix's AI is not empowered to make decisions; rather, final decisions are left to human reviewers, with the system generating a full audit trail to ensure decision explainability — crucial elements in regulatory compliance.

The Impact of Regulatory Barriers on Rental Access

Although the panelists represent organizations that operate technological platforms and services, each organization nevertheless works in the rental housing sphere, in which local regulations are layered over state and federal rules to create a patchwork regulatory ecosystem that poses system design and scalability challenges. LeBlanc gave the example of the Atlanta, Georgia area, where each of the region's 83 jurisdictions has its own rules governing rental housing. Outlaw argued that these local regulatory differences hamper organizations working cross-jurisdictionally and create inconsistent consumer experiences. Although these jurisdictional differences can be burdensome, Simela said, technology is much better suited than humans to manage a fractured legal landscape, helping to bring solutions to scale.

Panelists advocated for an ends-driven approach to regulation, asking first what kind of housing outcomes society wants and then assessing whether particular regulations advance or hinder those goals. LeBlanc called out regulatory requirements that go beyond health and safety to make renting rooms to nonrelated individuals difficult, citing the example of The Golden Girls as a well-known, if fictional, depiction of a living arrangement that many jurisdictions prohibit. Outlaw identified obstacles to duplex, triplex, and accessory dwelling unit construction as significant barriers to creating more missing middle housing that could improve rental supply. Klurfield cited administrative burdens that discourage landlords from participating in housing voucher programs, with Outlaw noting a Zillow tool that allows renters to input voucher data as income to facilitate their apartment search.

Outcomes

Together, these innovators represent some of the progress the private sector is making toward economically sustainable ways to improve access to rental housing. LeBlanc reports that PadSplit tenants, while having average-to-low credit scores and low incomes, have an average on-time payment rate of 97.5 percent, demonstrating how such tenants can succeed in housing when affordable supply is unlocked and payment systems are aligned to the financial realities of many low-income renters. PadSplit is also filling a gap in the housing continuum. The average tenure in a PadSplit rental is 9.5 months, which LeBlanc attributes to many tenants using the arrangement as a stepping stone toward a more traditional housing arrangement. LaBlanc sees success in the metric that 90 percent of PadSplit renters would recommend it to a friend.

Innovations that improve the rental experience also can improve future access to homeownership. Outlaw shared how Zillow allows the reporting of positive payment history to the major credit bureaus, which has helped more than 140,000 renters to date build a stronger credit profile. Despite ongoing challenges facing renters, dedicated innovators are helping to develop and deploy technologically enhanced solutions that can help improve access to rental housing.