The Radix Review: Multifamily Trends Explained

The national multifamily picture held steady in the week of July 5, with the gap to last year continuing to close on most metrics. For much of the spring, the annual comparisons had been improving week by week as this year's numbers caught up to last year's. That progress stalled briefly the week prior, then resumed this week. As of July 5, the average U.S. occupancy rate was 94.28 perce...

The national multifamily picture settled back this week after last week's jump, with occupancy holding roughly steady. As of June 28, the average U.S. occupancy rate was 94.24%, essentially flat on the week and down 29 basis points from a year ago. The leased percentage was 96.28%, unchanged on the week and down 93 basis points from last year.  Occupancy is holding the line, but the small imp...

The national multifamily picture strengthened in the week of June 21, with momentum building across nearly every metric. As of June 21, the average U.S. occupancy rate was 94.32%, up 6 basis points from the prior week and down just 25 basis points from a year ago, the narrowest annual gap we have seen in recent weeks. The leased percentage was 96.37%, up 6 basis points on the week and down 86 basi...

Multifamily Operational Results  The national multifamily picture stayed stable in the week of June 14, with a small encouraging shift underneath the surface. As of June 14, the average U.S. occupancy rate was 94.26%, up 3 basis points from the prior week but still down 33 basis points from a year ago. The leased percentage was 96.31%, up 5 basis points on the week and down 101 basis points from l...

Multifamily Operational Results  The national multifamily picture held steady to open June, with occupancy ticking up slightly on the week even as the annual comparison stayed soft. As of June 7, the average U.S. occupancy rate was 94.24%, up 2 basis points from the prior week but down 23 basis points from a year ago. The leased percentage was 96.27%, essentially flat week over week and down 104 b...

The multifamily market closed out May on a note of quiet resilience. Occupancy nudged higher for the week, the year-over-year gap continued to narrow, and leasing activity held steady. The rent side remains the story that operators are watching most closely. As of May 31, the average U.S. occupancy rate was 94.22%, up 4 basis points from the prior week and down 22 basis points from a year ago. The...

The national occupancy rate held at 94.20% for the week of May 24, up one basis point from the prior week. The leased percentage came in at 96.22%, also edging up five basis points week over week. Both metrics remain below last year's pace, down 22 and 137 basis points respectively, but the week-over-week stability suggests seasonal demand is absorbing new availability without further deterio...

Markets strengthened this week following the U.S.-China trade truce, but rising fuel costs continue to pressure renter affordability, an important dynamic heading into the peak of leasing season. Energy and Inflation: AAA reports the national gas average at $4.56/gal as of May 21, up roughly 44% from a year ago. At those levels, fuel costs are becoming a meaningful pressure point for renter budget...

Economic Headlines A temporary U.S.-China trade truce announced this week sent markets sharply higher, offering the first sustained relief investors have seen in months. The good news stopped there for most consumers, though, as the broader economic picture remains one of elevated costs and cautious hiring. Energy and Inflation: Brent crude has pulled back modestly from recent highs on ceasefire o...

The ongoing conflict in the Middle East continues to drive the economic narrative, keeping energy costs painfully high for consumers and complicating the outlook for inflation and interest rates heading into peak leasing season. For renters, the impact at the pump has been significant. The national gas average has surged past $4.50/gal according to AAA, up more than a dollar over the past two mont...

The Conference Board’s April 28 release showed that adults under 35 are the only group with rising confidence . If you're looking for some optimism for multifamily, this provides a promising outlook for the sector’s vital demographic, even as they balance challenges in the labor market and an uptick in inflation.  However, this optimism faces a "white-collar cooling" in the job mark...

For years, 2026 was circled on the calendar as the year multifamily metrics would roar back. However, metro-level job data suggests the recovery is being stifled by the demand side of the equation. Despite supply becoming less of a challenge, job creation—the primary engine for household formation—has stalled across the U.S. Here are comparisons of annual job gain for February 2026 relative to the...

The latest data is finally showing us the real-world impact of the "war shock," with skyrocketing oil prices officially putting an end to the recent cooling trend in inflation. Between those rising costs at the pump and a housing market that remains stubbornly stuck, renters are feeling the squeeze even as they find themselves staying in the rental pool longer.  Inflation Resurges on Ene...

The U.S. labor market bounced back in March to reverse February's losses. While the headline was positive, the U.S. has not posted consecutive months of job gains since April and May 2025. A bad month of growth has followed a good one the past year, and that was before the potential economic impact of the conflict in Iran. Headline Growth: The economy added 178,000 jobs in March, roughly thre...

Economic Headlines The economic narrative has shifted from "gradual recovery" to "geopolitical volatility" as conflict in the Middle East continues to dictate the pace of inflation and interest rates. For multifamily operators, the immediate impact remains the "inflation tax" on renters’ wallets, weaker job creation, and the subsequent effect on 2026 occupancy and ren...

Economic Headlines Impacts related to the conflict in the Middle East continue to dominate economic headlines. All data stated are based on the publication date of this report, and they are subject to change. · Crude Oil near $100/bbl : Up $30 since late February. · Gasoline at $3.72/gal : An 80-cent jump in 30 days. · Market Volatility : S&P 500 -2.4%; Dow -4.1% since the conflict began. · Mo...

Labor Market Loses Momentum The February jobs report was weaker than expected, with the U.S. losing 92,000 jobs and falling well short of the growth economists projected. While the unemployment rate remains relatively low at 4.4%, the widespread nature of the decline—hitting everything from healthcare to construction—suggests a softening that could eventually impact renter household income and ove...

Prior to increased global tensions, mortgage rates hit a milestone as the average 30-year fixed-rate dropped to 5.98% last week—the first time the metric has dipped below 6% since September 2022. This slight decline from 6.01% the prior week (and 6.76% a year ago), paired with rising inventory, is expected to pull buyers off the sidelines if the lower mortgage rates persist or continue to decline....

Major upgrades to Radix’s market intelligence This week, we've integrated millions of new public data points into our Research product, adding tens of thousands of properties to our Radix Analytics platform for a more comprehensive look at shifting dynamics within specific MSAs and submarkets. All data is based on publicly available information, including RealRents. These properties were prev...

The first half of February delivered a wave of favorable economic data, painting a more optimistic picture for the start of the year than many analysts predicted. The combination of cooling costs and a resilient labor market provides a strong foundation for the housing sector as spring approaches. Inflation inched closer to the Fed’s target of 2.0%. The Consumer Price Index (CPI) rose 2.4% year-ov...

The labor market kicked off 2026 with a surprising 130,000 new jobs in January based on today’s report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. It was more than double economists’ expectations. From an industry perspective, health care and social assistance (+124,000) and construction (+33,000) were major winners for monthly job gains. The federal government (-34,000) and financial activities (-22,000...

The U.S. Census Bureau’s first look at 2025 population data revealed a significant cooling trend. As of July 1, 2025, the U.S. population grew by 1.8 million from the prior year, or 0.5%. It was a sharp deceleration compared to the prior year’s 1.0% gain of 3.2 million people. Analysts attributed much of the change to a substantial decline in international immigration. The slowdown in overall popu...

Winter Storm Fern wreaked havoc on the U.S. this past week, with early estimates predicting more than $100 billion in total economic losses. According to MarketWatch, analysts from Morgan Stanley believe the storm’s disruption could shave 0.5 to 1.5 percentage points from Q1 GDP, potentially obscuring the true strength of the economy. Some people reading this planned to attend a major multifamily...

This week's RAOT As of January 18, annual rent growth for multifamily was 1.8% at the national level. The U.S. occupancy rate was stable at 92.8%. Also in this week's report, a recent survey of economists showed an improved outlook for job growth and a lower chance of recession in 2026. Explore our webpage for more insights and resources: https://bit.ly/Radix_Website

The U.S. labor market ended the year with an unemployment rate of 4.4%, reinforcing expectations that the Fed will keep interest rates steady at its meeting later this month. While the jobless rate was low, it was a lackluster year of job gains, which is a trend that could persist in 2026. Employment increaed by 50,000 jobs from the prior month in December on a seasonally adjusted basis. Of the 52...