Apartment Completions Rise Resulting in Slower Absorption Rates

The percentage of new apartment units that were absorbed within three months of completion rose from 50% to 55% in the second quarter of 2024, according to the Census Bureau’s latest release of the Survey of Market Absorption of New Multifamily Units (SOMA). The survey covers new units in multifamily residential buildings with five or…

Read more

Small Gain for Multifamily Built-for-Sale Construction

According to NAHB analysis of quarterly Census data, the count of multifamily, for-rent housing starts declined during the third quarter of 2024. For the quarter, 94,000 multifamily residences started construction. Of this total, 88,000 were built-for-rent. This was almost 14% lower than the third quarter of 2023. The market share of rental units of multifamily…

Read more

Best Quarter for Multifamily Missing Middle Construction in 17 Years

The missing middle construction sector includes development of medium-density housing, such as townhouses, duplexes and other small multifamily properties. The multifamily segment of the missing middle (apartments in 2- to 4-unit properties) has generally disappointed since the Great Recession. However, there was a noticeable uptick for this type of housing construction in the most recent data. For…

Read more

Higher Mortgage Interest Rates Slow Housing Production in October

Housing starts edged lower last month as average monthly mortgage rates increased a quarter-point from 6.18% to 6.43% between September and October, according to Freddie Mac. Overall housing starts decreased 3.1% in October to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.31 million units, according to a report from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban…

Read more

Multifamily Developer Sentiment Showed Mixed Results in Third Quarter

Confidence in the market for new multifamily housing showed mixed results year-over-year in the third quarter of 2024, according to results from the Multifamily Market Survey (MMS) released today by the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB).  The MMS produces two separate indices: the Multifamily Production Index (MPI) had a reading of 40, an increase…

Read more

Single-Family Starts Trend Higher in September

With the Federal Reserve beginning an easing of monetary policy and builder sentiment improving, single-family starts posted a modest gain in September while multifamily construction continued to weaken because of tight financing and an ongoing rise in completed apartments. Overall housing starts decreased 0.5% in September to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.35 million…

Read more

Single-Family Starts Up in August but Supply-Side Issues Linger

Single-family starts posted a solid gain in August on robust demand and moderating mortgage rates even as builders continue to grapple with challenges related to lot and labor shortages and elevated prices for many building materials. Overall housing starts increased 9.6% in August to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.36 million units, according to…

Read more