Smaller Multifamily Buildings Gaining Traction

The trend that favored larger multifamily unit buildings over recent years appears to be slowly changing. According to data from the Census Bureau Survey of Construction (SOC) of 2019, there was a slight increase in the number of multifamily units being built on smaller properties. Since the end of the Great Recession (2011), apartment development concentrated in larger properties. Thus, the 2019 data show a slight reversal of this trend, which the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB) forecasts will continue in 2020 and 2021. The 2019 data shows that the number of multifamily units completed in buildings with 9 or fewer units and 10 to 29 units increased in both relative and absolute terms in 2019. In contrast, the number and percentage of multifamily units completed in buildings with 30-49 units or 50 or more units decreased.