What's Hot What's Not CRE

Episode 46: Supply Wave Crests — Deliveries Drop 30% as Occupancy Ticks Up


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Welcome back to What's Hot, What's Not C.R.E. It's Monday, February 23rd, 2026. Today — the latest multifamily data. 

🔥 What's Hot — Supply Wave Cresting: Deliveries dropping from 371,000 units in 2024 to around 260,000 this year. Occupancy ticking up to 94.7% in January. Renter urgency increasing for the first time in three years. Midwest and Northeast outperforming — Chicago at 3.6% rent growth, New York 3.3%, San Jose 2.8%. Boston, San Jose, New York all under 5% vacancy. 

❄️ What's Not — Vacancy & Sun Belt Struggles: National vacancy at 7.3% — highest since 2017. South at 9.1%. Sun Belt still correcting — Austin near 10% vacancy, Phoenix down 3.7%, Denver down 3.2%. 35% of properties offering free rent — up from 25% a year ago. National rents down 1.4% YoY — 29 consecutive months of declines. 

💡 Why It Matters: Market is bifurcating. Supply-constrained markets growing. Sun Belt still correcting. Relief won't fully hit until late 2026 or 2027. 

🎯 Investor Takeaway: Focus on Chicago, New York, San Jose, Boston. Avoid Sun Belt until absorption catches up. Vacancy peak may be here, but recovery will be gradual. 

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#CRE #CommercialRealEstate #Multifamily #RentGrowth #OccupancyRates #Chicago #NYC #SanJose #Boston #SunBelt #Austin #Phoenix #Denver #MarketUpdate #RealEstate2026 #ApartmentInvesting #MultifamilyInvesting #VacancyRates #PropertyInvesting #InvestorTips

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What's Hot What's Not CREBy Alan Pavlosky