Big Markets with Modest Apartment Supply Volumes

Ten of the nation’s 50 largest apartment markets added fewer than 1,700 new units in 2025, expanding inventory at 1% or less. Among those markets, Pittsburgh added the fewest new apartments during the year, gaining just 600 or so units and increasing the existing base a mere 0.3%, according to data from RealPage Market Analytics. Adding roughly 1,100 new apartments in 2025 were Memphis, Virginia Beach and Oakland. Detroit and West Palm Beach saw the completion of roughly 1,300 units during the year. San Francisco and Cleveland logged additions of around 1,450 units, while completions in Baltimore and St. Louis totaled roughly 1,600 units. All 10 of those markets recorded year-over-year occupancy change above the U.S. norm in January 2026, with the nation’s largest increase of 1.4 points in Memphis. Despite that occupancy improvement, Memphis’ 4th quarter rate was the only one among those 10 markets below the national average. Similar to occupancy, all of the markets on this list – with the exception of Memphis – logged annual price change at or above the national average as of January 2026, led by growth of 8.7% in San Francisco.