COMMERCIAL REAL ESTATE'S ECONOMIC ADVISORS

National rents rose 1.2% year-over-year in February, down from 1.4% in January and 1.6% in December, marking a continued slowdown from the modest re-acceleration observed in late 2024. While rent growth remains positive, the trend has clearly softened, reflecting ongoing supply pressures and a normalization in demand following the post-pandemic surge.

This week’s Rental Housing Weekly Briefing examines the Senate’s passage of the Road to Housing Act, the recent rise in long-term interest rates amid surging energy prices and inflation expectations, and the key data releases to watch in the week ahead.

Ongoing racial disparities in income and wealth, and their tendency to endure across a person’s lifecycle, result in similar racial gaps in retirement security.