The U.S. multifamily market is rebounding strongly, driven by declining vacancy rates and robust absorption, according to CBRE.

Positive net absorption, which measures the change in the number of occupied units, reached 183,600 units in fourth quarter of 2024, the strongest fourth quarter performance on record and 12 times more than the pre-pandemic fourth quarter average. This marks the third consecutive quarter where demand surpassed new completions, further narrowing the annual completions-over-demand gap.

Healthy renter demand outpaced new deliveries in fourth quarter 2024, lowering the overall multifamily vacancy rate to 4.9 percent, pushing it below its long-term average of 5 percent.

Average monthly rents increased 0.5 percent year-over-year in fourth quarter 2024, reaching $2,176. With construction completions slowing and strong absorption persisting, rent growth is expected to accelerate in the coming months.

While a record 450,000 new units were