Emergency Measures Help Multifamily Weather the Storm

Financial relief and other emergency measures will bolster the U.S. apartment sector as local governments and federal agencies adapt to the economic turbulence unleashed by coronavirus, according to a new report by Marcus & Millichap.

All levels of government have responded to the crisis with measures such as extending unemployment benefits and banning evictions, while many multifamily landlords are offering rent flexibility to help residents through a rough patch. Collectively, the policies will ease the pain for an industry that was already benefitting from solid fundamentals, including vacancy rates for workforce housing tightening to near 20-year lows at the end of 2019.