Spring leasing season ends with limited momentum
The national average apartment rent increased to $1,742 in June 2026, up 0.1% from May’s revised level of $1,740, according to the latest multifamily rent report from Apartments.com. It was the seventh straight month of positive rent growth, but the small gain showed that rent momentum remains limited in many markets.
On an annual basis, rent growth was unchanged at 0.8% in June, matching May’s year-over-year reading and below the 1.2% growth recorded a year earlier. Apartments.com also revised May’s month-over-month rent growth to 0.3%, up from the previously reported 0.2%.
For multifamily lenders, the figures point to a market that is improving, but only gradually. Rent growth is no longer falling, but it is not strong enough to fully ease pressure on income projections, debt service coverage, and refinancing assumptions, especially in markets with heavy new supply.
Inventory still lagging
The June data also fits with other market indicators showing that vacancy and new inventory remain key issues. The U.S. rental vacancy rate stood at 7.3% in the first quarter of 2026, up from 7.1% a year earlier, according to Federal Reserve Economic Data. Yardi Matrix separately reported that the national multifamily average advertised asking rent rose to $1,767 in May, representing year-over-year growth of 0.2%.
CBRE’s 2026 multifamily outlook also expects effective asking rent growth to stay low for much of the year, with operators focusing more on keeping units occupied than pushing rents higher. For lenders, that means rent assumptions may need to be tested market by market, rather than based on the national average.
The regional data showed the same pattern: rents were broadly improving month to month—with all U.S. regions posting monthly rent increases in June—but the recovery remained uneven over the past year. The Pacific region recorded the largest gain at 0.2%, while the Midwest, South, Northeast, and Mountain regions each rose 0.1%.
The year-over-year figures showed a wider split. The Midwest posted the strongest annual rent growth at 2.0%, followed by the Pacific at 1.4% and the Northeast at 1.3%. Rents were still lower than a year earlier in the South, down 0.7%, and in the Mountain region, down 1.5%.
That divide suggests local supply conditions are still shaping rent performance. Markets with more new apartments continue to face pressure, while more supply-constrained markets are seeing stronger rent growth.
Increases in most markets
The metro-level data followed the same trend. Most major markets still recorded monthly gains, with 41 of the top 50 posting increases in June, down from 43 in May. San Francisco led with a 0.7% monthly increase, followed by San Jose at 0.6% and the East Bay at 0.4%.
The markets that declined were mostly those still dealing with weaker rent conditions. Fort Lauderdale fell 0.3%, Richmond declined 0.2%, and Louisville, San Antonio, and Pittsburgh each slipped 0.1%. Phoenix, Las Vegas, Columbus, and Tucson also recorded slight declines.
On an annual basis, the strongest markets were concentrated in Northern California and a few select metros. San Francisco posted the highest annual rent growth at 9.2%, followed by San Jose at 5.6%, Norfolk at 4.6%, and the East Bay at 3.1%.
By contrast, several markets with larger recent supply additions remained under pressure. San Antonio recorded the steepest annual rent decline at 3.4%, followed by Denver and Austin at 2.6% each, and Phoenix at 2.3%.
