CHICAGO—Homeownership levels have been at historic lows for years, and that has greatly benefitted the owners of multifamily apartments. But the overall strength of the sector, one of the healthiest in commercial real estate, doesn't mean owner/operators can be complacent. Each market has its own dynamic that requires a specific set of strategies, and tenants are always on the lookout for innovation.

GlobeSt.com sat down to talk about the current state and future prospects of the region's multifamily market with Jay Madary, president and chief executive officer of JVM Realty Corp., an Oak Brook, IL-based owner and operator of class A and B garden-style and mid-rise apartment communities in secondary and tertiary markets in the greater Midwest. The company's portfolio consists of communities in suburban Chicago; Cleveland; Indianapolis; Kansas City; and Tulsa, OK.

We're now deep into the second quarter, and there have been a lot of reports about the apartment sector's slight softening and the reduced appetite of lenders for new construction. How are the Midwest markets in which JVM operates doing so far in 2017?