On October 2nd, the Supreme Court of the United States put to bed CHIP v HSTPA by denying hearing a challenge to the rent laws of 2019. Since SCOTUS historically takes two percent of the cases that come to their desk this wasn’t a big surprise but more like a batted down Hail Mary pass. For the most part, the market has already priced in a SCOTUS denial because rent stabilized buildings have been selling for the past four years mostly based on interest rates, location, and property condition –…

We are entering the fourth quarter of 2023 with investment sales velocity down 50% over the same period last year. Valuations are down and owners have been slow to divest their assets. Rates have soared in the past 18 months to unsustainable levels so much so that Signature Bank, one of the premier lenders, went belly-up. Low sales velocity is not sustainable and it’s reaching its tipping point. There are three events that are converging on the multifamily market, seemingly all at once, which will shape the market for years…