Sununu’s campaign fueled by private equity cash

Former Sen. John Sununu’s comeback campaign took in $72,000 from private equity executives who may be responsible for New Hampshire’s housing affordability crisis.

A recent analysis of the state’s housing market found a pattern of high costs and limited supply, particularly among rentals and mobile homes, which have been a major focus of private equity investment in recent years.

Private equity firms have bought up these properties and then made huge profits by driving up rents beyond market rates. Firms that engage in this practice are often referred to as commercial landlords.

Sununu’s campaign reported $48,000 in contributions this year from executives at Blackstone, the largest commercial landlord in the country. The campaign took in another $24,000 from Apollo Global Management CEO Marc Rowan and his wife.

In New Hampshire, at least 16 mobile home parks containing about 3,713 homes are owned by private equity investors. Residents at a park in Northwood say their rent has increased by nearly 60% since a commercial landlord took over ownership in 2021.

Blackstone owns three properties in New Hampshire: a housing complex in Nashua, a cluster of apartments in Durham, and a student housing facility in Lebanon. Multiple Yelp reviews claim the Durham properties have rodent infestations and unresponsive management.

If Sununu is elected to the Senate, he will likely vote on the future of private equity ownership of housing. Earlier this year, the Senate passed a bipartisan bill that would crack down on the practice. The House passed a similar bill, but differences between the two pieces of legislation are still being debated, signaling that more votes may come in the future.

Sununu previously served in the Senate from 2003 to 2009. He then went to work for Akin Gump, a D.C.-based lobbying firm that counted both Blackstone and Apollo Global Management as clients.

In 2014, Sununu joined the board of TAP Advisors, an investment banking firm that also advised Blackstone.

Sununu will face former Massachusetts Sen. Scott Brown in a Sept. 8 Republican primary. The likely Democratic candidate is Rep. Chris Pappas, who supported the House bill curtailing private equity’s housing practices.