US Apartment Vacancies Reach Record High as Rents Decline in November

According to Apartment List’s latest report, US rent prices continued to decline in November, and the national vacancy rate climbed to a record high as the market absorbs a large volume of new supply amid weakening labor conditions, GlobeSt reported (12-4-25).

November marked the fourth consecutive month of rent declines, a trend Apartment List expects will extend through the traditional off-season into early 2026. Rent growth began slowing early this year, tapering off in August during peak moving season, for the third straight year.

Apartment List said the national median rent fell 1.0% in November to $1,367, a slightly sharper monthly drop than the 0.8% decline a year earlier. Rents were down 1.1% year-over-year, continuing more than two years of slightly negative movement. Since the 2022 peak, the national median has fallen 5.2% or $75 per month, although rents remain 19% above January 2021 levels following the surge of 2021–22.

The national vacancy rate rose to 7.2%, the highest level in Apartment List’s index. The rate reflects the fading end of a construction wave that delivered more than 600,000 multifamily units last year. Another 243,000 units were completed in the first half of 2025—below late 2024 levels but still well above historical norms.

“We’re past the peak of a multifamily construction surge, but a healthy supply of new units is still hitting the market and colliding with sluggish demand,” Apartment List said. Units now take an average of 36 days to lease, up from 34 days last November and double the 18-day average of summer 2021.