Research desk
One original briefing a day from the Proppely Research Desk: what happened nationally, why it matters for a portfolio, and what to do this week. Every number links to the source that reported it.
Latest briefings
12 briefings, newest first.
Freddie Mac's weekly survey put the 30-year at 6.95% for the week ending September 17. Daily and live trackers ran near 7.2%. The gap is a survey lag, and underwriting off the headline understates your debt service by about 30 basis points.
Read the briefingConcessions now run on 43.5% of listings across the 50 largest metros, up 3.1 points in a year, with 18 markets above half. The advertised rent is no longer the price — and Census says the rental vacancy rate's latest annual move is not statistically significant.
Read the briefingAugust Census data shows apartment completions down 35.7% year over year, a statistically significant drop, while permits for 5+ unit buildings rose 9.4%. The widely reported 22.5% plunge in starts carries a margin of error of plus or minus 24.9 points.
Read the briefingThe Fed raised rates a quarter point to 3.75%-4%, and 16 of 18 officials project a higher rate by year-end. Floating-rate debt feels it first; refinancing and values follow a 10-year Treasury that crossed 5% this week. What to do with loans, renewals and budgets this week.
Read the briefingSelf-represented plaintiffs rose from about 11% to roughly 17% of federal civil cases after generative AI arrived, and docket activity per case is up 38%. Two studies find AI-drafted complaints do not win more often. For landlords the exposure is procedural cost.
Read the briefingHUD withdrew its 2016 criminal-records guidance and is proposing to delete its disparate-impact rule, but the statute, the screening regulations and the FCRA adverse-action notice all still apply. What that means for your written criteria.
Read the briefingPublished estimates put a turn at roughly $4,000. Divide the annual dollars an increase earns by that number and you get the move-out risk it can afford to add — the one calculation that should settle most renewal offers in a flat market.
Read the briefingCalifornia gives you 21 days, New York 14, Arizona 14 business days, and most of the rest 30 — but the clock starts at a different moment in almost every state, and a late itemization is often a total forfeiture.
Read the briefingJBG Smith ($8.1M) and MAA ($1.2M) agreed to settle Washington, D.C.'s RealPage antitrust suit. The consent orders go beyond a data ban: for eight to 10 years, neither may use D.C. pricing tools that reward accepting prices, auto-accept without user limits, or make batch rejection materially harder.
Read the briefingThe Fed meets Sept. 15-16 with markets braced for the first hike since 2023 and mortgage rates at a 15-month high of 6.76%. Sidelined buyers are a retention tailwind, but a record seller surplus means unsold homes can become rental competition. What to do before Wednesday.
Read the briefingPinnacle agreed to a proposed DOJ consent decree filed Sept. 4; Camden Property Trust is the only one of the six landlords Multifamily Dive lists that has not settled. The decrees bar pricing on competitors' nonpublic data; here is what pricing-software users should check this week.
Read the briefingRealPage shows rents up 0.9% year over year and Yardi Matrix logs its first positive August in years, but 1.2 million units still in lease-up cap growth. Renewal pricing this fall depends on your submarket's lease-up share and concession rate, not the national line.
Read the briefingEditorial policy
Written for operators, with the process in the open.
Every morning the desk reads the latest from HousingWire, Multifamily Dive, Redfin, Realtor.com, RentCafe, Yardi Matrix, RealPage, HUD, the Federal Reserve, the BLS and more, then writes one original briefing on what matters for a portfolio.
Rates, rents, percentages, dollar figures and dates carry an inline link to the report that published them. No source, no number. Guides describe what the law generally requires and say to confirm with local counsel.
The desk uses AI tools to gather sources and draft. Every piece is screened for Fair Housing language and unsupported claims before it publishes, and nothing here is legal or financial advice.
A person reviews the desk and can correct or remove any article. If a figure looks wrong or a source was misread, tell us and we will fix it.
Author: Proppely Research Desk. The whole policy — every source the desk reads, the six steps a briefing goes through, and what this desk will not do — is on About the research desk. Spot an error, or want a piece corrected or removed? Contact us. Every article is also published in formats news readers and AI assistants read directly, so they can quote it with the link back here.
Proppely is the AI-native platform for landlords and property managers — leases, rent, maintenance and accounting in one workspace.