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equity financing index

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Multifamily executives across the nation report that deal flow is increasing and debt financing conditions are improving, according to the National Multifamily Housing Council’s (NMHC) latest quarterly survey. But there’s a caveat. While respondents were confident about first-quarter market conditions, such as improving rent-growth trends, those who completed the survey after the April 2 tariffs were announced expressed a conspicuously different opinion. According to NMHC, about half the respondents completed the survey before the tariffs and the other half submitted responses after. The April 2025 Quarterly Survey of Apartment …

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Z Modulars Aerial Image

By Randall Towb of Mitsubishi Electric Trane HVAC US (METUS) Texas multifamily owners and developers are utilizing all-climate variable capacity heat pumps and variable refrigerant flow (VRF) systems for heating and air-conditioning (HVAC) needs in their low-rise, mid-rise and high-rise buildings. These systems deliver on both resident satisfaction and building owners’ return on investment (ROI) thanks to key benefits such as energy performance, zoned comfort, design flexibility, quiet operation, reduced maintenance and advanced controls and monitoring. In addition to resident comfort and ROI, these all-electric systems align with growing concerns …

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The Winslow

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Economic uncertainty has continued to be a primary concern for multifamily construction and development firms. More than half say current and future projects have experienced construction delays, according to the National Multifamily Housing Council’s (NMHC) Quarterly Survey of Construction & Development Activity. Fifty-eight percent of respondents stated they had experienced construction delays between January and March in the jurisdictions in which they operate. The most frequently cited causes for delays were economic uncertainty (68 percent) and economic feasibility (68 percent); followed by permitting, entitlement and professional services (58 percent); availability of construction …

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For most of 2024, relatively high property values combined with rising interest rates priced buyers out of the market for new commercial and residential real estate acquisitions.  This slowdown has not only impacted investors and homeowners, but it’s also affected the entire real estate industry — from lenders to appraisers, brokers, law firms, title insurance companies and beyond.  Because Section 1031 exchange activity moves in lockstep with the real estate investment cycle, activity for qualified intermediaries has slowed as well. Section 1031 exchanges traditionally have been used by investors to …

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Heritage on Hover in Boulder, Colorado

Property owners are learning how to provide fast internet at their communities for good reason. According to a 2024 renter preferences survey by the National Multifamily Housing Council (NMHC) and Grace Hill, high-speed internet is one of the top requirements for renters today. Ninety percent of respondents said they would not rent without it. Lisa Clark, senior director, MDU sales, with Lumos goes a step further, calling internet the “fourth utility,” behind water, electricity and gas. Consistently strong internet doesn’t just power remote work and streaming services, it’s the fuel …

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Sharon Géno

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Rising insurance costs are standing in the way of building more affordable housing. According to a survey from the National Multifamily Housing Council (NMHC), about 77 percent of owner/developer firms reported rate increases of up to 20 percent or more compared with 2023 costs. NMHC’s 2024 State of Multifamily Risk Report attributes the high costs to a variety of factors, including increased cost valuation, limited capacity within the reinsurance market, shrinking underwriting capacity and restricted availability of guaranteed cost/zero deductible programs.  Previous NMHC research, such as the 2023 State of …

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Homelok

When it comes to access control and security at multifamily communities, the mechanical lock-and-key system is as old and reliable as ever. However, many property owner-operators are in search of a more advanced security solution and are increasingly turning to digital access control to satisfy that demand. A digital access control system is a technology-based system to regulate who can access a property and when. There are two types of digital access control systems: online and offline. An offline access control system does not require Wi-Fi or cellular network connectivity. …

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3755 McKinney St. in Denton, Texas

Securing replacement properties that make financial sense when executing conventional 1031 exchanges has required some investors to expand their horizons, whether by geography or asset selection.  Apartment owner and asset manager RailField Partners, for example, last summer entered the Midwest market for the first time when it purchased the Hangar at Emerson, a 218-unit multifamily asset in suburban Indianapolis.  The Bethesda, Maryland-based company, which was founded by former Fannie Mae executives in 2013, up to that point had largely focused on a dozen markets in the Mid-Atlantic, Southeast and Texas, …

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The investment sales brokerage panel at InterFace Texas Workforce & Affordable Housing

DALLAS — As is the case for many commercial asset classes and markets in 2025, there is an expectation of elevated deal volume for investment sales of affordable housing properties in Texas. But brokers in that space caution that the rebound will likely be marginal and is not necessarily indicative of ideal market conditions taking hold. A quintet of panelists broke down this notion and others at the InterFace Texas Affordable & Workforce Housing conference on Feb. 13 at the Westin Galleria Dallas hotel. Mary Ann Bennett, senior managing director …

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Valley Ridge in Rossville, Georgia

Late last summer, optimism ran steady across the multifamily investment sales market. Prior to the Federal Reserve’s initial rate cut in September 2024, interest rates had remained stable throughout the year. The outlook was positive. But that more ebullient market proved temporary.  The Fed’s interest rate cut had a positive effect on the secured overnight financing rate (SOFR), which fell from 5.3 percent on Sept. 18, 2024, to 4.3 percent in early February 2025. The U.S. 10-year Treasury yield rose during the same period. On Sept. 18, 2024, the 10-year …

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