The average rent in a U.S. multifamily property rose in January for the first time in six months, according to Yardi.

The asking rent increased $3 to $1,746, which was up 20 basis points over the month and 0.8% year over year.

The outlook for multifamily is “positive but not without volatility from the economy and policy uncertainty,” Yardi wrote in its January market report. The national occupancy rate declined to 94.5% percent in January, the lowest level since 2014.

Occupancy fell because of new supply. However, construction slowed to half the level of 2022, Yardi said. 

“Meanwhile, high mortgage rates and the scarcity of for-sale homes on the market keep apartment retention rates high and move-outs to homeownership low,” the report said.  

Regionally, rent growth was the strongest in cities in the Northeast and Midwest, whereas several cities in the South saw declines.

The average rent in New York City, for example, was up 5.4%. The growth was also strong in Northern New Jersey (4.2%) and Philadelphia (3.1%), Detroit (4.1%) and Kansas City, Missouri (3.9%).

On the other hand, nine of the top 30 markets saw rents drop. Rents fell 5.1% in Austin, Texas, and declined in Raleigh, North Carolina (-3.5%), Phoenix (-2.4%), Atlanta (-2.2%) and Orlando, Florida (-2%).

On a nationwide basis, the average rent on a single-family build-to-rent unit rose $5 in January to $2,157 after several months of decline. The rents were still down 0.2% year over year, however.