Equity Residential is an American real estate investment trust headquartered in Chicago, Illinois, founded in 1969 and built into a major national apartment landlord under real estate investor Sam Zell beginning in the 1990s. It is one of the largest owners and operators of apartment communities in the United States, concentrating its portfolio in coastal and urban markets such as New York, Boston, Washington D.C., Seattle, San Francisco and Southern California.
Facts
Company TypeReal estate investment trust (REIT) specializing in apartment ownership and management (merged with AvalonBay Communities in August 2026; the combined company was renamed Vivmark Residential) 1 Founded Year HeadquartersChicago, Illinois, U.S., and Arlington, Virginia, U.S. (dual headquarters, prior to the August 2026 merger) 1 Connections
Operates In
A major real estate or REIT company; classified in the atlas real-estate-industry.
Sources
1. Equity Residential (Wikipedia)
WikipediaLead paragraph, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Equity_Residential (redirects to Vivmark Residential)
Vivmark Residential (formerly Equity Residential), based in Arlington, Virginia, and Chicago, Illinois, is a real estate investment trust that invests in apartments. As of August 2026, the company owned or had investments in 184,000 rental apartments and had over 11,100 apartments under construction.
History section, founding sentence, en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Equity_Residential
The company had its origins in Equity Finance and Management Company, founded in 1969 by Sam Zell.
Lead paragraph (headquarters), en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Equity_Residential (redirects to Vivmark Residential)
Vivmark Residential (formerly Equity Residential), based in Arlington, Virginia, and Chicago, Illinois, is a real estate investment trust that invests in apartments.
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