A report from Crain's New York Business. "Manhattan rents fell by 1.9% last month compared to the year before when accounting for concessions by landlords, according to appraisal firm Miller Samuel. Rents are correcting themselves after prices rose beyond what the market would bear, prices are being depressed by a glut of supply, and New Yorkers are simply reaching the limits of what they can afford."

The Bend Bulletin in Oregon. "Construction is underway at The Alexander, an apartment complex for people 55 and older on the east side of Bend, in the heart of the medical district. The 136-unit complex, expected to be finished in the spring, is part of what appears to be a much fuller pipeline of apartments than even a year ago."

"With close to 1,000 apartments completed in the last two years, one developer thinks Bend could become a renter’s market. And recent rental data backs up that notion. Bend Community Development counts 2,878 units completed, under construction or proposed over the past two years, according to a report generated Sept. 30. That’s 30 percent more than were in the pipeline at the same time in 2017."

"Rent growth has slowed nationwide, but even more so in Bend, said Chris Salviati, housing economist at Apartmentlist. 'That slowdown is a bit more extreme in Bend,' Salviati said. 'From July through September, we were actually reporting negative rent growth in Bend.'"

"It’s conceivable that Bend is on its way to becoming a renter’s market, said Chris Looney, vice president of development at Paradigm Properties in Eugene. 'We’re seeing it in our class ‘A’ stuff in Portland,' Looney said. 'Rents are down; concessions are up. It’s a renter’s market.'"

The San Antonio Express News in Texas. "City Council members Thursday overhauled two programs that gave millions of dollars in incentives to downtown housing developers but that critics say neglected San Antonio’s need for affordable housing."

"Councilman Rey Saldaña said the city risked subsidizing a glut of market-rate housing if it couldn’t find a way to encourage more housing for families earning 60 percent or below the area median income. 'If we’re going to be serious about the issue of a diverse downtown, we have to put up or shut up if we want that as our goal,' Saldaña said."

From D Magazine in Texas. "Curbed takes up a topic we’ve batted around these parts before: why are new apartments in American cities so ugly? Calling it the bland, boxy apartment boom, the website wonders why so many U.S. cities are being reshaped by the same kind of mishmash-y housing that has come to define the many Dallas inner city neighborhoods that have been the beneficiaries of new investment and development over the past decade or so."

"These days, aesthetics, architectural ideas, and regional sensitivity take a back seat to the more practical considerations of the development market, such as building code, construction costs, and a trend in the industry to cut expenses by bypassing architects all together."

"In a sense, what we are seeing being built in Dallas and across America is the perfect architectural expression of our age: hyper-commodification, computer-driven formality, an over-attention to surface considerations, generic, inconspicuous façades papered-over with the promise of pseudo-luxury amenities."

"A combination of inexpensive materials and a shortened economic life cycle mean the stud-and-drywall apartments that are sprouting up won’t last as long as the heavy stone and oak creations of the Victorians."

"'I don’t think these buildings will be around in 40 years. They’ll collapse and be maintenance problems,' says Denver-based writer Michael Paglia."