Market Stadium Report

If you thought rent growth had cooled, think again. Over the past six months, Tampa, FL (+62%) has emerged as the fastest-growing rental market in the US, driven by an extraordinary +200% surge in Studio rents. Other strong performers include Appleton (WI), Deltona (FL), and Savannah (GA), showing consistent rent growth across both small and large unit types.

According to recent analysis by Realtor.com and Parcl Labs, many single-family homeowners are shifting from selling to renting amid rising mortgage rates, economic uncertainty, and a slower buyer market. Unable to fetch their desired prices, more owners are choosing to rent out their homes rather than sell at a discount.

Where do the biggest multifamily deals actually happen? And more importantly—what kinds of assets are trading hands? From Rust Belt bargains to Sunbelt momentum, the past five years of sales paint a telling picture of how investors are placing their bets.

Market Stadium introduces the Multifamily Demand & Supply Index — a simple, equally weighted score (0–100) that benchmarks U.S. metros.

Over the past few months, we’ve been asked a recurring question: What are markets with a lot of Starbucks really like?” To answer, we grouped ZIP codes by Starbucks density — *No Starbucks (0), Few (1–4), Many (5+)* — and compared their housing, demographics, and market performance.

With the growing expectations for a rate cut in September, it’s a timely moment to take a closer look at which U.S. metros are seeing the fastest rise in 30–89 day mortgage delinquencies.

Markets aren’t just about where they are today — it’s about how fast they’re shifting. A city that looks cold on the surface might be heating up underneath, while a “hot” market could already be running out of steam. By combining current levels with year-over-year growth, we can see which metros are really on the move. In my previous newsletter post, I compared Sold Units (transactions) and Current Listing Units (inventory) purely based on Current levels.

This week, I wanted to take a closer look at how transactions (Sold units) are moving relative to active inventory (Listings) across U.S. metros. So I mapped the 50 largest markets into four simple quadrants:

Real estate markets are always a balancing act between what’s being built and what people are willing to pay. When construction cranes rise and rents shift, they reveal the underlying story of supply, demand, and investor confidence.