McALLEN — Rhodes Enterprises is investing well over $100 million to develop hundreds of homes in eight build-to-rent communities across South Texas in the next few years, capitalizing on a national trend that’s become popular elsewhere but hadn’t yet been pioneered locally.

Build-to-rent communities are entire neighborhoods designed and built for home renters that essentially offer residents the amenities of living in a single-family home without the investment in time and money associated with becoming an actual homeowner.

A study earlier this year put the number of build-to-rent communities under construction nationwide at 613, totaling 110,727 single-family rentals.

More than 20% of those homes are being built in Texas, the report estimated.