The Rent Roll with Jay Parsons

Episode #74 – Jason Morgan | Inside Multifamily's Biggest Family Business
Date: March 5, 2026

Episode Overview

This compelling episode explores the remarkable rise of Morgan Properties—America’s second-largest apartment owner—and the dynamics behind its multigenerational family leadership. Host Jay Parsons sits down with Jason Morgan, recently promoted to co-CEO alongside his brother Jonathan, to discuss the company’s origins, growth strategy, recent acquisitions, and insight into operating and investing in the multifamily space, with a special focus on the Midwest. The episode also breaks down current trends in multifamily sales, regional investment patterns, regulatory challenges, and the mindset that has driven Morgan’s ongoing success.

Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. Multifamily Market Trends and Data Analysis

[00:02–28:58]

• Capital’s “Flight to Quality”: Nationally, apartment sales are recovering post-COVID, but heavily concentrated in higher-rent submarkets (“flight to quality,” not “flight to affordability”).

  • High-rent submarkets: 2025 sales at ~90% of 2019 levels.
  • Middle-rent: 83%.
  • Low-rent: 67%.
  • “This capital, just like renter demand, is going through a flight to quality moment, not the flight to affordability moment. It's been a flight to quality moment.”—Jay Parsons [08:19]

• Regional Perspectives:

  • Sunbelt & Mountain States: Highest volumes in high-rent submarkets (83% of 2019), but low-rent areas severely lag (55%).
  • Dallas: A standout, with high-rent submarkets at 104% of 2019 sales, mid/low at just under 80%.
  • Midwest: The only region where all rent-tiers exceeded pre-pandemic sales (mixed use, less new competing supply).
    • “All three submarket rent tiers in 2025 had sales volumes above 2019 levels. It's the only region of the country where that's true.” —Jay Parsons [19:13]
  • Northeast: Like Midwest for high/mid-tier, but low-tier lags.
  • West Coast: Uniquely, lower-rent submarkets rebounded more.

• Deal Volume vs. Liquidity:

  • Recovery in some markets is being spread across more properties due to new construction, diluting liquidity for individual assets.

• Cap Rates and Asset Preference:

  • Investors have not found “new normal” for lower-tier or older assets. Pricing gaps between high- and low-end growing.
  • “Buyers don't see discounts big enough yet to entice them back into these lower rent submarkets.” —Jay Parsons [14:41]

2. Industry Headlines & Policy Trends

[~22:00–28:58]

• Massachusetts Rent Control Ballot:
  • Proposed cap: 2.4% (CPI) or 5%, whichever is greater, applying retroactively to Jan 2026. No vacancy reset—would impact investment and development.
  • “If you're still starting a project this year, please tell me how you're making this work…”—Jay Parsons [24:14]
• Federal Proposals to Restrict SFR Investor Purchases:
  • Senators Hawley & Merkley’s bipartisan bill would sharply limit large investor acquisitions of single-family homes.
  • Parsons counters that research shows investors do not materially drive up prices and are net sellers since 2016.

3. Good News: Resident-Centered Apartment Life

[~26:00–28:00]

• Featured story of Ken and Patty Sandell, retirees who act as Apartment Life coordinators in Gallatin, TN, building community among residents and supporting staff.

4. Interview: Jason Morgan, Co-CEO, Morgan Properties

The Origin Story and Family Roots

[29:01–34:15]

• Mitchell Morgan (founder) started as a shoe salesman, paid his way through Temple University and Law School, observed his father’s bankruptcies, and adopted a “focus on the downside” risk philosophy.
  • “My father saw my grandfather go bankrupt twice. To this day, my dad will say, focus on the downside. The upside will take care of itself.”—Jason Morgan [29:54]
• Morgan Properties began by buying three suburban Philadelphia apartment buildings in 1985 ($1 down—leveraging tax-exempt and seller financing).
• Still own those original 1,400 units—company has now grown to 110,000 units in 22 states.

Growth, Strategy, and Mindset

[34:15–41:11]

• Contrarian Approach:

  • Long-term, flexible capital focus; buy portfolios (often complex, multi-state) rather than single assets.
  • Avoids typical fund structures with forced hold/sell deadlines.
  • Leans into buying older, undervalued properties (60s/70s vintage), emphasizing discount to replacement cost, value-add, and complex deal structures.
  • “We're buying a very simple asset class, but doesn't mean we can't think through complex structures or complex portfolio acquisition strategies.” —Jason Morgan [37:01]

• Half-Institutional/Half-Direct Ownership:

  • 50% of the portfolio is family-owned, 50% in joint ventures with institutional partners.

• Sales & Portfolio Management:

  • Selling is now strategically employed to prune the portfolio, mainly due to deal structuring or when assets become too small for operational scale.

Recent Major Acquisitions

[41:11–45:14]

• Trilogy Portfolio: 11 assets, 8 states—complex (multiple loan assumptions and agency facilities).
  • “We love that complexity and we were able to get a 4% financed portfolio at a really attractive 6 plus percent cap rate.” —Jason Morgan [43:25]
• Dream Residential REIT: Canadian seller, sunbelt/Midwest focus, "plug and play" for value add, too small for major institutional buyers but too big for locals—goes to Morgan's sweet spot.

Midwest Strategy: The "Steady Eddy"

[45:14–49:06]

• Midwest and upstate NY:

  • Attractive due to limited new supply, high affordability, diversified employment, minimal institutional competition, and cheap entry relative to replacement cost.
  • “People can continue to be excited about…the Carolinas and you know, Florida. You know, we're excited about Cincy, we're excited about Dayton.” —Jason Morgan [45:23]
  • Morgan went from 0 to 19,000 units in the Midwest since 2019.

• Criteria for Selecting Markets:

  • Not just job growth, but supply constraints and job diversity.
  • Focus on maintaining a rent differential below Class A and ensuring affordability survives after renovations.

Navigating Regulation and Urban Markets

[52:30–57:02]

• Regulatory risk (e.g., rent control) is a “real risk” and major deterrent to new investments, especially in places like the Maryland-DC corridor, Minnesota, and potentially Massachusetts.
• Morgan's activity in these riskier markets depends on risk premium (cap rate spread).
  • “It hasn't made sense to be growing...unless there was a cap rate reset. And...that's the only thing that's going to drive people back in.” —Jason Morgan [54:13]
• Encouraged by politicians in some states (e.g., PA) pushing zoning reform for more multifamily development, viewing supply as the path to affordability.

Outlook and Buy Box

[58:51–61:41]

• Continued focus on Midwest and select Northeast MSAs with transaction velocity and proven value-add stories.
• Will consider contrarian plays in the Sunbelt or elsewhere if distress and pricing are compelling.
• Selective on scaling in markets with steady deal flow.

Why Institutions Don’t Follow

[61:41–66:30]

• Institutional capital chases “core plus” (Class A/new, Sunbelt/coastal) because it’s easier to raise and exit, despite more volatility.
  • “All the deals we're buying are north of a 6% cap rate…Contrast that with where investors are buying Core plus at 5 and 4% cap rates…and then hoping that they're going to churn the rent roll and be able to actually get out alive.” —Jason Morgan [63:58]
• Many investors—even those based in the Midwest—lack conviction in their own markets, preferring to chase headline growth areas.

Leadership Transition & the Next Generation

[67:12–70:56]

• Jonathan and Jason Morgan are now co-CEOs, infusing the company with more delegation and positioning for scale to 150,000+ units.
• Expanding into multifamily-adjacent credit strategies: bridge loans, CMBS, preferred equity ($2.5bn deployed so far).
• Continuing the core DNA but aiming for “fundamental difference” in another five years, leveraging innovation and new platforms.
• On being co-CEO with his brother:
  • “We complement each other incredibly well…we look at a problem fundamentally differently. And so it's actually…interesting…If he likes it and I like it, we often like it for fundamentally different reasons…if I don't like something and push back or he doesn't…we gain…confidence…working out great.” —Jason Morgan [69:50]

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “Focus on the downside. The upside will take care of itself.”
  —Jason Morgan recounting his father’s philosophy [29:54]
• “We were in the rehab business before value add was even a thing.”
  —Jason Morgan on their first apartment acquisition [31:09]
• “I hope your viewers... don't see this and start investing in the Midwest because we love the fact that there's no competition out there, no institutional demand.”
  —Jason Morgan, on loving neglected markets [45:17]
• “We're buying a very simple asset class, but it doesn't mean we can't think through complex structures.”
  —Jason Morgan [37:02]
• “If you're in a good location, then you can make the rest work.”
  —Jay Parsons [32:37]
• “I think it's a lot riskier today to be buying the core plus stuff at 475 in markets that are still challenged...than buying our stuff at a 150 to 200 basis points...spread benefit at a very attractive all-in basis.”
  —Jason Morgan [63:58]

Timestamps for Major Segments

• 00:02–08:30: Opening and market data overview—flight to quality, national/regional trends
• 08:30–24:00: Submarket analysis; cap rates, liquidity, Sunbelt versus Midwest
• 24:00–27:00: Industry headlines (MA rent control, federal investor regulation)
• 27:00–28:58: Good News community story; trivia segment
• 28:58–70:56: Jason Morgan interview: origins, buy box, Midwest focus, deals, leadership transition

Tone & Style

The episode is candid, data-driven, and features a friendly, straightforward style typical of Jay Parsons' interviews—with Jason Morgan’s responses providing practical, sometimes tongue-in-cheek, insights into how Morgan Properties stays ahead of the institutional “herd.” There’s a clear emphasis on disciplined, contrarian thinking, long-termism, and community-minded leadership.

This summary equips listeners—or non-listeners—with the key stories, data, strategies, and personalities that made this episode a standout profile of one of multifamily’s biggest, and most adaptable, family-run success stories.