While the decline is slight, the national average rent just dropped for the first time in eight months.

According to Yardi’s monthly rent report, the national average rent dropped by $1 in September. This is the first time in eight months that rent has not risen. Year-over-year rent growth remains unchanged at 3%.

According to the report, this slowdown is likely due to seasonality as the multifamily enters the traditionally slow winter months of the fourth and first quarter. The report predicts that long-term demand will remain strong as demographics, economics and preference all send favorable winds into the industry’s sails.

For those who need a little more convincing that everything is stable, occupancy has continued to increase in recent months, reaching 95.4% in August, which means that demand has continued to absorb new supply.

In September, Orlando came out on top of the list of rent growth leaders again, posting a rate of 6.1% rent growth.

San Antonio came in last place with an overall rent growth of 0.5%.

With strong employment numbers and the economy humming along at a healthy clip, there appears to be continued support for robust, long-term demand for multifamily product. 

Yardi’s report is composed of multifamily data collected from 127 U.S. markets. You can find the full report and breakouts of metro-by-metro data here.