Millennials are Confident, but Layoffs Jump
Economic headlines
The Conference Board’s April 28 release showed that adults under 35 are the only group with rising confidence. If you’re looking for some optimism for multifamily, this provides a promising outlook for the sector’s vital demographic, even as they balance challenges in the labor market and an uptick in inflation.
However, this optimism faces a “white-collar cooling” in the job market driven by AI according to a recent article by The Wall Street Journal. While Q1 private-sector layoffs fell 1% overall, tech-specific cuts surged 40% in Q1 2026 as firms pivoted toward automation. The following details are for all role types, not just tech.
Layoffs by the Numbers:
- AI Restructuring: Meta (8,000 roles) and Snap (16% of staff) are cutting jobs specifically to fund AI infrastructure.
- High-Earner Impact: Significant April cuts at Nike, Morgan Stanley, and Disney (5,675 combined) target roles spanning technology, marketing, management, and operations.
- Largest Cuts: The sheer volume of cuts from giants like Oracle (projected 30,000) and UPS (30,000) signals a deep “right-sizing” of corporate operations nationwide.
While resilient sentiment among younger renters supports steady renewal rates, the concentration of massive AI-driven layoffs in tech and corporate sectors creates a significant headwind for new-lease absorption. It also casts doubt on a strong surge in the labor market in time to benefit this leasing season for multifamily.
Multifamily Operational Results
Although year-over-year metrics remain soft, the market is showing seasonal stabilization. Most major markets saw a weekly uptick in occupancy and leased percentages. Still, even as leasing volume held steady or improved, effective rents have yet to show a significant rebound.
As of April 26, the average U.S. occupancy rate was 94.12%, down 43 basis points from the prior year. The leased percentage was 96.03%, down 99 basis points from last year.
Traffic averaged 7.2 tours per property last week, up by 2.6 compared to a year ago. The average number of leases signed was 2.6 per property last week. It was down by 0.7 leases per week relative to this time last year.
Annual net effective rent growth for new leases was 0.4%. RevPAU, which combines the change in rents and occupancy, was down 0.1% on an annual basis.
| MSA | Annual Effective Rent Growth | Occupancy Rate |
| Atlanta, GA | -0.5% | 93.6% |
| Austin, TX | -6.0% | 92.0% |
| Dallas, TX | -1.7% | 92.9% |
| Denver, CO | -6.6% | 93.3% |
| Houston, TX | -5.4% | 92.8% |
| Las Vegas, NV | -5.1% | 94.1% |
| Miami, FL | -1.5% | 94.9% |
| Phoenix, AZ | -4.4% | 93.6% |
| San Francisco, CA | 4.7% | 96.5% |
| Seattle, WA | -1.2% | 95.1% |
| Washington, DC | -1.1% | 94.8% |
| U.S. | 0.4% | 94.1% |
Source: Radix Data as of 04/26/2026
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