The national average multifamily rent fell by $5 from October to November, down to $1,744, owing to a wave of new supply counteracting the strong demand in Sun Belt markets, according to Yardi Matrix’s latest National Multifamily Report.
Year-over-year rent growth fell by 10 basis points in November, down to 0.9%. This growth rate has remained relatively steady throughout the year, at or below 1.0%, according to Yardi.
However, different locations have recorded very different rent growth trends. Sixteen out of the top 30 metros in Yardi’s data set have recorded positive YOY rent growth, led by New York City at 5.0%, while 14 are negative — Austin, Texas, coming in lowest at -5.6%. The national occupancy rate was 94.7% in October, unchanged YOY. (Occupancy data is current to the previous month.)
| Market | YOY rent growth, November 2024 | YOY rent growth, October 2024 | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| New York City | 5.0% | 5.3% | -0.3 |
| Kansas City, Missouri | 3.4% | 3.7% | -0.3 |
| Detroit | 3.2% | 3.7% | -0.5 |
| Washington, D.C. | 2.8% | 3.2% | -0.4 |
| Indianapolis | 2.7% | 3.0% | -0.3 |
| Chicago | 2.7% | 2.9% | -0.2 |
| New Jersey | 2.5% | 2.9% | -0.4 |
| Baltimore | 2.4% | 2.1% | 0.3 |
| Columbus, Ohio | 2.3% | 3.1% | -0.8 |
| Boston | 2.1% | 2.8% | -0.7 |
SOURCE: Yardi Matrix
On a month-to-month basis, rents fell in 25 out of the top 30 metros, with Denver coming in lowest at -1.0% rent growth. Out of the five metros where rents did not fall, Kansas City, Missouri, saw no change, while rents rose 0.1% in Baltimore, 0.2% in Miami and New York City, and 1.0% in Tampa, Florida — an exceptional outlier.
While rents have fallen in Tampa over the previous year owing to a high volume of deliveries, this recent growth bucks that trend, according to Yardi. Some of the demand in this market has come from homeowners displaced by Hurricane Milton who are renting temporarily, according to the report.
Single-family rents fell $7 from October to November, down to $2,150. Overall, the average single-family rent is down $25 from its peak during the summer. Yardi owes this slowdown to seasonality and competition from deliveries in Florida and Texas.
Given the moderate rent growth in recent months, the report states that controlling expenses should remain a priority for multifamily operators. Expense growth has slowed in recent years — costs have risen 4.0% this year to date, down from 9.0% growth in 2023 and 7.1% in 2022.
“Expense growth for market-rate and affordable properties will likely continue to moderate going forward, in part because the drivers of growth such as insurance are slowing,” the report reads.
However, while labor and maintenance expenses have fallen, the possibility of rising tariffs or deportations under the incoming Trump administration could push costs higher again, cause a drop in rental demand and create delays in housing development owing to a shortage of workers, according to the report.
