COMMERCIAL REAL ESTATE'S ECONOMIC ADVISORS

This week’s Rental Housing Weekly Briefing examines Freddie Mac’s multifamily lending activity, recent trends in housing affordability as measured by the National Association of Realtors, and the key data releases to watch in the week ahead

Multifamily rent growth remained subdued in December 2025, with national rent gains continuing to register positive in nominal terms but negative after adjusting for inflation. The latest Zillow Observed Rent Index (ZORI) data point to a rent environment that is materially cooler than the post-pandemic peak and running below long-run historical norms in real terms, even as nominal rents continue to edge modestly higher.

This week’s Rental Housing Weekly Briefing examines institutional participation in the single-family rental market, recent labor market developments shaping rental demand, and the key data releases to watch in the week ahead.

Over the past two decades, the New York City metro rental market hasn’t just grown — it has aged. Beneath the headline narratives about rent growth and post-pandemic volatility, a quieter structural shift has been unfolding: nearly all net growth in rental households has come from renters over the age of 35, while the number of under-35 renters has barely changed.