U.S. Apartment REITs "Monthly Rent Roll Call – May 2026" Goldsmith

Research evidence excerpt

U.S. Apartment REITs "Monthly Rent Roll Call – May 2026" Goldsmith

e consistently been offering compelling concessions to renters which may be

difficult to burn off in 2026 absent a boost in demand.

Northern CA remains strong, high supply Sunbelt markets soft with general

improvement

Coastal: On average, the strongest markets for the REITs in April 2026 were

Coastal. This included San Francisco, which remained the strongest major REIT

market by a wide margin. For context, the average effective rent growth across 34

major REIT markets was down -0.2%. San Jose was higher by 770 bps while San

Francisco was higher by 1,170 bps. Both markets continued to accelerate. Oakland

is also starting to benefit from the improved demand dynamics in Northern CA. NY

remained strong, but growth did not accelerate in April. Interestingly, Washington

DC has remained soft, but growth accelerated in April over March. This may be

partly attributable to the REITs starting to lap DOGE job cuts.

Non-Coastal: REIT results across the Sunbelt MSAs remained soft but trended

generally upward in April vs. March. Markets with accelerations in rent growth

include Houston, Raleigh, Austin, and Charlotte. Fort Worth notably had positive

average new lease rent growth across the REITs which mirrors REIT commentary on

a recovery in Dallas. We think the market has benefitted from strong in-migration

and job growth. Meanwhile, Atlanta, Orlando, and Nashville softened

sequentially. Denver was soft, but results were relatively stable in April compared

with March.

Figure 1: Apartment REIT - April 2026 - Monthly & TTM and Rolling Quarterly Effective Rent Growth per RealPage

Apa rtm ent RE IT - A pri l 2 026 - M

onthly & TTM and Rolling Quar terl y Ef fecti ve Re nt Gr owth per R ealPa

ge

Source: RealPage, UBS

U.S.