My first NMHC experience was incredible – I was inspired by the speakers, panels, and left networking meetings feeling optimistic. I wanted to share the top five trends I noticed throughout the week.
- Multifamily Income Resilience with Expense Concerns: We’ve seen the income side of multifamily hold up — rents are strong; occupancy is steady, but there is concern about expenses, including taxes and insurance. To navigate this, it is incumbent upon the management company to provide a comprehensive business plan, making the community as compelling as possible, driving ancillary income and providing efficiencies on the expense side.
- Optimism in Deals: Deal flow is improving, but deal availability remains at a premium. That’s where scale matters. DMG’s $1.5B AUM affords DMG clients unique access to potential off-market deal flow.
- Midwest and Chicago are Now a Multifamily Destination: There are fundamentals aligning Chicago and the greater Midwest making it more attractive to investment capital than it has been for several years. Supply constraints in key submarkets and underlying fundamentals are drawing capital back in.
- AI and Multifamily are Here: AI will be a differentiator for multifamily operators who learn how to embrace, harness and leverage it. DMG is already folding AI into our standard operating procedures and experiencing efficiencies across our management business. The savings is passed on to our clients.
- Significant Fallout is Mitigated: Distress exists, but the fallout is contained. Strong operating fundamentals and a cooperative lending environment have helped the multifamily industry navigate potential fallout from capital markets’ distress.
As we look to 2026, multifamily operators have an optimal environment for growth and opportunity. The platforms poised for success are those who are capable of creating sophisticated and successful business plans that maximize asset value by pushing rents, incorporating additional ancillary sources of income, increase expense efficiency and leverage AI.