RIS Media

1 October 2016

With strong rent growth in most metropolitan areas, employment gains and low inflation countering weaker-than-expected gross domestic product, Yardi® Matrix forecasts moderate U.S. rent growth as 2017 approaches.

A new national market outlook report from Yardi Matrix, “U.S. Multifamily Outlook 2016,” points to ongoing economic recovery in the U.S. and diminishing capital market volatility as key harbingers of modest but steady rent growth. Nationally, rents were up 5 percent year-over-year through August; demand from growing millennial and retiree populations, coupled with peaking rental unit construction, promises more of the same, according to the report.

“Although we expect demand and occupancy levels to remain healthy, we forecast more moderation in rents in line with wage increases and affordability issues,” the report states.