In its second survey of 11.5 million units of professionally managed apartment units across the country, the National Multifamily Housing Council (NMHC) found that 84% of apartment households made a full or partial rent payment by April 12, up 15 percentage points from April 5.
NMHC’s Rent Payment Tracker numbers also examined historical numbers and found that 90% of renters made full or partial payments from April 1-12, 2019, and 91% of renters in March 1-12, 2020. The latest tracker numbers reflect a payment rate of 93% compared to the same time last month. These data encompass a
“It appears that the vast majority of apartment residents who can pay their rent are doing so ... so apartment owners can help residents who legitimately need help,” said President Doug Bibby. “Unfortunately, unemployment levels are continuing to rise and delays have been reported in getting assistance to residents, which could affect May’s rent levels."
Bibby said that, as apartment residents begin receiving the direct payments and enhanced unemployment benefits from the federal government, "we will continue to see improvements in rent payments.”
CLASS A PROPERTIES DOING BETTER ON RENT PAYMENTS THAN WORKFORCE HOUSING
“Anecdotally, we are hearing that different parts of the industry are experiencing different levels of rent payments,” said David Schwartz, NMHC Chair and CEO Chairman of Chicago-based Waterton. “As you would expect, more expensive Class A properties, whose resident base may be more able to work from home, are reporting much higher percentage of rent payments than operators of more affordable workforce
"History offers us no frame of reference for the truly unprecedented economic situation we find ourselves in,” said Bibby. "With apartment firms stepping up to support their residents by waiving late fees, creating flexible payment plans and offering other creative solutions for residents impacted by COVID-19, we expected more renters to pay later in the month than has historically been the case. The increase in this week’s number over last week’s, however, shows that apartment residents are continuing to pay rent despite the financial challenges facing them.”
The NMHC Rent Payment Tracker metric
HOW NMHC'S PAYMENT TRACKER WORKS
The NMHC Rent Payment Tracker is a cumulative data tool. Every week, the PMS providers submit two data points to NMHC: the percentage of apartment households that paid their rent for a specific time period and the total number of occupied units in their data universe (with certain exclusions). Data is submitted weekly on the following schedule: week one: from the first day of the month through COB on the 5th, week two: from the 1st through COB on the 12th , week three: from the 1st through COB on the 19th and finally from the 1st through the last day of the month, giving a monthly data point for the "percent who paid." To recap, the "percent who paid" number will increase each week, until we reach our final “percent who paid” number for the month.
Partial payments or conversions of security deposits into rent (which some property management firms are allowing) are captured once, when the first partial payment is accepted to avoid having them double counted. Subsequent partial payments are not captured in the data because the metric is “what percent of renters paid some/all of their rent” in a given month. Additional payments made by the same resident in the month would increase the total amount of rent paid, but this metric does not measure that.
The NMHC Rent Payment Tracker is powered by Entrata, MRI Software, RealPage, ResMan and Yardi. More information on the NMHC Rent Payment Tracker can be found here. Additional NMHC resources, data, and materials can be found here.
Related Stories
Construction Costs | Apr 16, 2024
How the new prevailing wage calculation will impact construction labor costs
Looking ahead to 2024 and beyond, two pivotal changes in federal construction labor dynamics are likely to exacerbate increasing construction labor costs, according to Gordian's Samuel Giffin.
Healthcare Facilities | Apr 16, 2024
Mexico’s ‘premier private academic health center’ under design
The design and construction contract for what is envisioned to be “the premier private academic health center in Mexico and Latin America” was recently awarded to The Beck Group. The TecSalud Health Sciences Campus will be located at Tec De Monterrey’s flagship healthcare facility, Zambrano Hellion Hospital, in Monterrey, Mexico.
Market Data | Apr 16, 2024
The average U.S. contractor has 8.2 months worth of construction work in the pipeline, as of March 2024
Associated Builders and Contractors reported today that its Construction Backlog Indicator increased to 8.2 months in March from 8.1 months in February, according to an ABC member survey conducted March 20 to April 3. The reading is down 0.5 months from March 2023.
Laboratories | Apr 15, 2024
HGA unveils plans to transform an abandoned rock quarry into a new research and innovation campus
In the coastal town of Manchester-by-the-Sea, Mass., an abandoned rock quarry will be transformed into a new research and innovation campus designed by HGA. The campus will reuse and upcycle the granite left onsite. The project for Cell Signaling Technology (CST), a life sciences technology company, will turn an environmentally depleted site into a net-zero laboratory campus, with building electrification and onsite renewables.
Codes and Standards | Apr 12, 2024
ICC eliminates building electrification provisions from 2024 update
The International Code Council stripped out provisions from the 2024 update to the International Energy Conservation Code (IECC) that would have included beefed up circuitry for hooking up electric appliances and car chargers.
Urban Planning | Apr 12, 2024
Popular Denver e-bike voucher program aids carbon reduction goals
Denver’s e-bike voucher program that helps citizens pay for e-bikes, a component of the city’s carbon reduction plan, has proven extremely popular with residents. Earlier this year, Denver’s effort to get residents to swap some motor vehicle trips for bike trips ran out of vouchers in less than 10 minutes after the program opened to online applications.
Laboratories | Apr 12, 2024
Life science construction completions will peak this year, then drop off substantially
There will be a record amount of construction completions in the U.S. life science market in 2024, followed by a dramatic drop in 2025, according to CBRE. In 2024, 21.3 million sf of life science space will be completed in the 13 largest U.S. markets. That’s up from 13.9 million sf last year and 5.6 million sf in 2022.
MFPRO+ News | Apr 12, 2024
Legal cannabis has cities grappling with odor complaints
Relaxed pot laws have led to a backlash of complaints linked to the odor emitted from smoking and vaping. To date, 24 states have legalized or decriminalized marijuana and several others have made it available for medicinal use.
Multifamily Housing | Apr 12, 2024
Habitat starts leasing Cassidy on Canal, a new luxury rental high-rise in Chicago
New 33-story Class A rental tower, designed by SCB, will offer 343 rental units.
MFPRO+ News | Apr 12, 2024
Greystar becomes top apartment owner, manager, and developer in 2024
One firm set records for this year’s National Multifamily Housing Council Top 50 roundup of multifamily firms. Greystar now sits at number one in the NMHC’s lists for top apartment owner, manager, and developer in 2024.