Mixed Metrics, Slowing Momentum
Boston multifamily fundamentals began to decelerate coming out of the late leasing season, with average advertised asking rents inching down 0.1%, on a trailing three-month basis through September, to $2,942, according to the latest Yardi Matrix Boston multifamily market report. Yet the figure was up 1.5% year-over-year, well ahead of the 0.6% U.S. rate, as noted in the national multifamily report. Occupancy in stabilized assets remained healthy, at 96.2% in August. That marked a 40-basis-point slide over 12 months, but remained above the 94.7% U.S. average.
Employment growth was flat through July, and the unemployment rate held at 4.5% in August, ahead of the state (4.8%) but slightly behind the U.S. (4.3%). Boston added 18,200 net jobs year-over-year through July, led by education and health services, leisure and hospitality and government. Meanwhile, four sectors contracted, led by professional and business services and information. Life science and mixed-use projects continued to dominate Boston’s pipeline, including Harvard’s Enterprise Research Campus Phase A, Mass General’s Phillip and Susan Ragon Building, as well as the next phase of Fenway Center.
Developers delivered 4,820 units in 2025 through September, with Lifestyle accounting for roughly two-thirds of that. Another 14,325 units were underway, even as starts slowed. Investment remained steady, with $2.1 billion in assets trading through September. In fact, a steady volume of transactions involving large Lifestyle assets has been a rare constant for the past five years.
Read the full Yardi Matrix Boston Multifamily Market Report: November 2025
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