“Still, after two years of record deliveries, even modest growth signals resilient demand,” the report said, noting that more than 250,000 units were absorbed through May, nearly 9% of them in Austin alone.
Despite encouraging absorption figures, the outlook is clouded by lingering policy risks. Tariff changes, recently delayed to August, have left developers and investors facing planning uncertainty.
“Tariffs are the big unknown,” Robert Martinek, director at EisnerAmper, said in an interview with Mortgage Professional America. “I’m a believer that I don’t think it’s going to have a big effect. I think construction is planned to be down. You know that you’re going to get steel and aluminum, and concrete is up. But it typically works itself out.”
Meanwhile, the labor market shows signs of cooling. Job switching has slowed, reducing wage pressure and possibly muting future rent gains, even though unemployment remains low.
A Harvard Center for Joint Housing Studies report cited in the Yardi analysis emphasized the growing financial strain on renters. In 2023, half of US renters spent over 30% of their income on housing and utilities, while 27%, or 12.1 million households, paid more than 50%. Renters earning between $30,000 and $44,999 were hit hardest, with 70% considered cost-burdened.