Which U.S. Markets Saw Apartment Demand in Q4?
Real Estate News: Real Estate Investing Podcast
Kathy Fettke / RealWealth
4.5 • 546 Ratings
🗓️ 9 February 2026
⏱️ 4 minutes
🧾️ Download transcript
Summary
Apartment demand cooled across much of the U.S. in the fourth quarter of 2025, marking a return to more typical seasonal patterns after several years of unusually strong growth. But the slowdown wasn't universal.
In this episode, Kathy Fettke breaks down which U.S. apartment markets continued to see positive demand in Q4 and why those metros stood out as others experienced net move-outs. We look at absorption trends in major markets like New York, Phoenix, Fort Worth, and Newark, and what tight occupancy levels in select regions may signal for multifamily investors heading into 2026.
You'll learn how shifting demand patterns reflect a broader normalization in the apartment market—and why local fundamentals matter more than ever for investors evaluating multifamily opportunities in today's changing real estate environment.
📊 Want to learn more? Just visit www.RealWealth.com/Syndications.
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Despite a seasonal slowdown across much of the U.S. apartment market, several major metros |
| 0:05.2 | continue to post solid demand heading into the end of 2025. I'm Kathy Fetke, and this is real estate |
| 0:11.7 | news for investors. This is Real Estate News with Kathy Fedke. According to new fourth quarter data reported by Real Page, the U.S. apartment market |
| 0:25.6 | saw net moveouts for the first time in three years. |
| 0:28.6 | That's a notable shift after an extended post-pandemic boom. |
| 0:32.6 | Demand cooled in the third quarter and softened further in the fourth, signaling a return to more |
| 0:38.6 | typical seasonal patterns rather than a broad market breakdown. Out of the nation's 50 largest |
| 0:44.3 | apartment markets, only 14 posted positive absorption in the fourth quarter. Even more telling, |
| 0:50.7 | just four of those markets absorbed more than 1,000 units between October and December. |
| 0:57.0 | Leading the pack was New York, which absorbed roughly 4,300 apartment units in the fourth quarter. |
| 1:03.0 | That's slightly above its five-year quarterly average and marks the seventh straight quarter of positive demand. |
| 1:09.0 | Occupancy remains exceptionally tight, sitting near 97% as of January, |
| 1:15.0 | one of the strongest readings in the country. Close behind was Phoenix, which absorbed nearly 4,000 |
| 1:21.6 | units. While that's down from its late 2024 peak, it still represents the eighth consecutive quarter of strong demand, |
| 1:29.9 | highlighting Phoenix's continued resilience after years of rapid growth. |
| 1:34.7 | In Texas, Fort Worth stood out as the only large market in the state to log positive |
| 1:40.0 | fourth quarter absorption, with just over 1,500 units absorbed. However, occupancy remains relatively |
| 1:47.5 | soft at under 93%, one of the lowest levels among major U.S. markets, suggesting supply is still |
| 1:55.1 | outpacing demand. In the Northeast, Newark joined New York as the only large market in the region, with positive |
| 2:02.6 | fourth quarter demand. About 1,400 units were absorbed, though that's well below Newark's |
| 2:08.4 | five-year average. Even so, occupancy remains tight at over 96%, reinforcing the region's supply-constrained |
| 2:16.7 | dynamics. Meanwhile, Columbus was the lone Midwest market |
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