Will Class A Rent Growth Continue to Trend Ahead of B and C Stock?

Coming out of the Great Financial Crisis period, effective asking rents in Class A apartments grew faster than Class B rents for about four years (technically spanning 1st quarter 2000 to 4th quarter 2013). But Class B rental rates grew faster for the following seven years, all the way up until mid-year 2021. As of 2nd quarter 2025, Class A rental rates were up 2.3% year-over-year, while Class B stock grew 0.8% (less than the U.S. average). Class C stock continues to see rent cuts of 1.1%, according to data from RealPage Market Analytics. Today, there are some differences versus the previous cycle (grossly understated perhaps), but if we're looking at three-plus years out on the horizon, likely diminishing treasury yields coupled with stabilizing Class B fundamentals means asset class performance could start to resemble the mid-2010s decade at some point. Perhaps another way to frame it: Class A's positioning relative to Class B today is indicative of where we're at in the real estate cycle. Though admittedly, Class A properties gained momentum earlier in the supply cycle this time around due to outside factors (one of which can be chalked up to the frozen single-family market).