The first half of 2026 showed a slight improvement, though there’s room for more, given pre-pandemic standards.
Highlights:
- The average U.S. advertised asking rent climbed $4 to $1,763 in June, up 0.2% year-over-year.
- Short-term gains equaled annual growth at 0.2%.
- Dry powder created debt offerings, absent equity investment opportunities.
- SFR-BTR average advertised rents turned positive in June with a growth of 0.2%, up $6 to $2,234.
Six months in, advertised rents ticked up 1%
The national multifamily average advertised asking rent grew $4 to $1,763 in June, representing a 0.2% annual growth. During 2026’s first half, rents ticked up 1%, a figure 170 basis points below the pre-pandemic increase of 2.7%. Gateway metros such as New York and San Francisco led in terms of annual improvements, with an increase of 5.6% and 4.7%, respectively. Sun Belt markets continued showing negative rent movement, with Austin (-4.0%) recording the steepest declines, followed by Denver (-3.1%), Tampa (-2.8%) and Phoenix (-2.7%).
Short-term advertised rental changes mirror annual movement, with June bringing a 0.2 percent monthly growth. More than two-thirds of the Matrix top 30 markets recorded gains that month. While Lifestyle and Renter-by-Necessity growth was tied at 0.2%, the RBN properties recorded a substantial performance gap. Some of the markets with the strongest RBN performance in June included New York—also topping charts—with a 2.6% improvement, and San Francisco (0.4%). At the opposite end stood Charlotte (-0.4%), Austin and Houston (-0.3% each). Such a spread underscores the affordability pressures felt by lower-income households as their capacity to absorb rent increases diminished amid a bifurcating economy.
The average U.S. occupancy rate clocked in at 94.1% in June, recording a 60-basis point decline year-over-year. This market softening arrived following a contraction in demand as just 108,000 units were absorbed year-to-date through May, marking a 61% annual decline. Among the Top 30 Yardi markets, San Francisco was the sole metro to record occupancy gains, which stood at 0.3%. The remaining registered declines, with most being above the 50-basis point threshold. Tampa (-1.4%), Washington, D.C. (-1.0%), Houston and Columbus (-0.9% each) were the markets with the steepest contractions. Two new metros—Las Vegas and Atlanta—joined the below 93% occupancy list, previously including Dallas, Houston and Austin.
Debt offerings abound, absent equity investment opportunities
Headwinds such as sluggish rent growth, declining occupancy and ballooning expenses have tempered transaction activity. Investors sought different methods of accessing multifamily capital stacks through debt products. This year alone, many such new offerings emerged, increasing the capital markets supply. For instance, Freddie’s discontinuation of the B-piece tranches in its K-Series securitizations pushed high-yield investors to explore other multifamily CMBS deals, which are now making a comeback for the first time since the Great Recession. Other programs include D2 Asset Management and Natixis’ product that provides debt up to a 75% loan-to-value ratio, as well as JP Morgan and MF1, which were the first with a multifamily-only CMBS deal in May.
The advertised U.S. single-family build-to-rent rates increased $6 to $2,234 in June, marking a turnaround to positive annual growth, which stood at 0.2%. BTR rents increased 1.1% during 2026’s first half, outcompeting the multifamily pace by 10 basis points. Still, the sector is not without its challenges with occupancy sliding 30 basis points year-over-year to 94.7% in June. What’s more, the sector’s performance spread between RBN and Lifestyle rent growth can exceed 950 basis points in certain markets, such as Nashville (0.5% Lifestyle rent growth versus 11.5% RBN rent growth) and Inland Empire (-2.2% versus 11.1%).
Read the full Yardi Matrix Multifamily National Market Report: June 2026.
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