Greystar once again took the top spot on the National Multifamily Housing Council’s list of the biggest apartment industry owners and managers. 

As of Jan. 1, the Charleston, South Carolina-based firm owned 122,545 units and managed 946,742. The firm’s ownership growth occurred organically, while the absorption of Atlanta-based owner and developer Wood Partners’ units in February 2024 fueled its operational expansion, according to a company spokesperson.

The top four owners on the NMHC list remained the same from a year earlier. Memphis-based REIT MAA claimed the second spot with 102,348 units, followed by King of Prussia, Pennsylvania-based Morgan Properties with 96,727 apartments and New York City-based Nuveen with 86,586 homes.

Houston-based Asset Living held the No. 2 spot for the second straight year on the managers list with 288,665 units. Dallas-based Willow Bridge Property Company was next with 220,676 apartments, followed by Austin, Texas-based RPM Living with 218,661 homes.

Overall there was some movement on NMHC’s Top 50 Owners and Managers lists, but it appears to be far less than in previous years.

Owner shifts

The biggest risers on the owners list were Hartford, Connecticut-based UBS Realty Investors, which jumped 15 spots after gaining more than 6,000 units; San Francisco-based FPA Multifamily, which rose six spots after gaining more than 10,000 apartments; and San Diego-based MG Properties, which moved up six slots after gaining more than 4,000 homes.

The Top 10 had slight changes, with Arlington, Virginia-based REIT AvalonBay Communities swapping into the No. 5 spot as Chicago-based Equity Residential moved down to No. 6. New York City-based The Related Cos. jumped from No. 10 to No. 7. Atlanta-based Cortland fell one spot to No. 9 as Franktown, Colorado-based Monarch Investment & Management Group switched into No. 8.

Des Moines, Iowa-based BH Equities dropped 16 spots, as it reported roughly 15,000 fewer units under ownership. The only firms to gain more than 10,000 units in 2024 were Greystar, The Related Cos. and FPA Multifamily. 

The NMHC Top 50 Owners list added six companies that weren’t on the list in 2025, including:

• El Paso, Texas-based Hunt Cos. at 17.
• Irvine, California-based Kairos Investment Management at 37.
• Brookfield, Wisconsin-based MLG Capital at 41.
• Dallas-based S2 Capital at 44.
• Greenwich, Connecticut-based The Richman Group at 46.
• Chicago-based AMLI Residential at 49.

Manager movement

On the Top 50 Managers list, the biggest movers were Orlando, Florida-based ZRS Management, which gained six spots and added almost 15,000 units, and Greensboro, North Carolina-based Hawthorne Residential Partners, which rose six spots and added almost 13,000 apartments.

For ZRS, growth has been organic. “We have never bought another company,” CEO Darren Pierce told Multifamily Dive. “We have no interest in growing through acquisition. We have no interest in changing the product types that we manage or going into markets where we don’t have partners and owners that we’ve already worked with before.”

The Top 10 was remarkably stable, with Dallas-based Willow Bridge, formerly Lincoln Property Co., switching the No. 3 and No. 4 slots with RPM Living. Greenbelt, Maryland-based Bozzuto jumped to the No. 9 slot and Des Moines, Iowa-based BH Management Services dropped to 11.

FPA Multifamily and Denver-based Cardinal Group Cos. moved up four slots each and gained more than 10,000 units and more than 8,000 apartments, respectively.

Two Atlanta-based firms fell, with RangeWater dropping seven slots with almost 20,000 fewer units under management and Pegasus falling five spots with 2,500 fewer apartments. Despite rising on the owners list, The Related Cos. fell four slots with roughly 4,500 fewer homes under management.

The NMHC Top 50 Owners list added six companies that weren’t on the list in 2025, including:

• El Paso, Texas-based Hunt/Evolve at 23.
• Denver-based Mission Rock Residential at 46.
• Dallas-based Westdale Real Estate Investment & Management at 47.
• Dallas-based Valiant Residential at 48.
• Dallas-based Knightvest Capital at 50.

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