According to Apartment List, November marks the fourth month that multifamily properties have seen negative growth in the national median rent: down 0.9% month over month to $1,340. Low demand during the holiday season likely means that rent growth will continue its downward path for another month or two.

Year-over-year growth is at -1.1%. "This stands in sharp contrast to the prevailing conditions of 2021 and 2022, when rent prices were surging and year-over-year growth peaked at 18 percent nationally," Apartment List wrote. "But despite this cooldown, the national median rent is still nearly $250 per month higher than it was just three years ago."

The national vacancy rate is 6.4%, slightly higher than in pre-pandemic times. This is unlikely to change in the near future given the large volume of apartment units still being built. However, construction levels depend on local markets, not national ones. There will be high variability in the coming year, with some metros facing significant gluts, as GlobeSt.com previously reported.