Articles

Nearly All Metros Post Positive Rent Gains

National rent growth in the single-family rental (SFR) sector remained strong and consistent in 2025 as market-level pricing momentum was broad-based and robust, according to an analysis of newly released data from the Zillow Observed Rent Index. Year-end annual rent gains averaged 2.9%, down from 4.1% in 2024, marking the most modest increase since 2015. But even as the intensity of SFR rent growth abated last year, its reach was extensive, with 98 of the 100 largest markets posting year-over-year gains.

Current Reports

Small Multifamily Investment Trends Report Q1 2026

Arbor Realty Trust’s Small Multifamily Investment Trends Report Q1 2026, developed in partnership with Chandan Economics, shows that lending activity in the sector increased for the second consecutive year amid a sharp increase in refinancings. Even with persistently high interest rates and rigorous underwriting standards, small multifamily entered the first quarter on steady footing.

Articles

Regional Multifamily Cap Rates Converge

Multifamily cap rates remain stable nationally, even as regional pricing diverged through the end of last year. While some regions saw compression and others late-stage repricing, regional cap rates show less variation as affordability-driven migration and capital reallocation compressed yield gaps.

Analysis

U.S. Multifamily Market Snapshot — February 2026

The U.S. multifamily market finished 2025 with growing optimism and resilience. Investment volume accelerated to a three-year high, bolstered by greater interest rate clarity and the tightest cap rates across major real estate sectors.

Articles

Single-Family Homes for Rent Reach 7-Year High

The number of households renting single-family homes rose 1.7% in 2025, reaching a seven-year high, according to a new Arbor Realty Trust and Chandan Economics forecast, based on an analysis of newly released U.S. Census Bureau data. Since the pandemic, the single-family rental (SFR) sector has stabilized, reversing recent household losses and regaining momentum.

Articles

New Affordable Housing Policies Expected to Expand Capital Access

The latest report in Arbor Realty Trust’s Affordable Housing Trends series, developed in partnership with Chandan Economics, explores lingering challenges and new opportunities in this critically important multifamily real estate sector. In a new video, Dr. Sam Chandan, one of the commercial real estate industry’s leading scholars, shares his take on the new research report and what its findings could mean for the future of affordable housing finance.

General: 800.ARBOR.10

Home | In the News | Ivan Kaufman on Yahoo! Finance: Why Multifamily Outperforms

Ivan Kaufman on Yahoo! Finance: Why Multifamily Outperforms

Monday, September 21, 2020
Email Arbor Contact Arbor Press Call Arbor 833.578.7554
Ivan Kaufman on Yahoo Finance

COVID-19 and Demographics Shift Housing Preferences to Suburbs

Watch the full Yahoo! Finance Interview here.

There are winners and losers with COVID-19. Ivan Kaufman, the founder, chairman and CEO of Arbor Realty Trust, Inc. (NYSE:ABR), discussed on Yahoo! Finance why Arbor and the multifamily sector have remained strong throughout the pandemic.

Apartment housing has outperformed all other asset classes, Kaufman explained to “The First Trade” co-hosts Brian Sozzi and Alexis Christoforous. “On the multifamily side, there has been only a slight drop off in rent collections and occupancy.”

With assistance from the CARES Act, “People did very well initially. They caught up with their bills. They kept their rents current,” said Kaufman. He pointed out that earlier in the crisis, unemployment hit 14% but has dropped to approximately 8% and continues to improve.

“Our baseline on people paying rent is extraordinarily good,” he stated. Conditions are beginning to return to normal. However, Kaufman projects certain challenges still lie ahead for urban areas.

Data shows that several years ago, people began leaving cities. Millennials had started to move to the suburbs to form families, and COVID-19 has accelerated the trend. Anticipating this trend, prior to the coronavirus turbulence, Arbor focused investments in suburban properties. Now, suburban housing is seeing price appreciation and greater demand with a lack in inventory.

Kaufman advises investors to look at macro trends. Numbers have been supporting suburban growth, but having kept a keen eye on telling data such as urban mobility tracking, he nonetheless projects that cities will return to normal in the future. He anticipates young people will continue to find the allure of urban areas. A year from now, looking at metropolitan universities welcoming back students, and restaurants and offices reopening, Kaufman opined most people believe the situation will be about 95% back to normal.

“It’s going to be a very bumpy fall but I think the worst is behind us,” he said.

Watch the full Yahoo! Finance Interview here.

Learn more about Arbor’s multifamily investment solutions. Contact Arbor today to see how our products could assist your business goals.

Follow Us



Recent News