A report from the Wall Street Journal. "In the years leading up to the coronavirus pandemic, rental apartments were one of the hottest property types. Things are different now. Even stronger markets are seeing declines of about 5% in effective rent rates, which takes into account landlord concessions like months of free rent when leases are signed, according to John Pawlowski, an analyst with Green Street Advisors."

"In harder-hit markets, like New York and San Francisco, effective rents are down 15% to 20%. Shares of public REITs have fallen about 30% since mid-February when Covid-19, the illness caused by the new coronavirus, began spreading in the U.S., Mr. Pawlowski said."

From Zillow. "Rental concessions on Zillow® listings are now nearly twice as common as they were in February, as landlords strive to attract new tenants in a rental market that has softened considerably. The share of rental listings on Zillow that advertise some form of concession rose from 16.2% in February to 30.4% in July. Renters will most often find discounts in Washington D.C. -- 57.5% of listings advertised at least one type concession in July. Charlotte (53%) and Austin (47.1%) had the next-highest shares. These are all up dramatically from July 2019, when 27.4% of rentals in Washington D.C. were offered with concessions, Charlotte had 29.4% and Austin just 15.3%."

From CBS Boston in Massachusetts. "As moving vans and college students once again descend on Boston, real estate experts say thousands of apartments are still empty and unrented due to the pandemic. Landlords are finding it difficult to fund buildings typically crammed with college students. Experts estimate more than 10,000 apartments in Boston remain up for grabs. 'The biggest decrease we’ve seen so far was a $1200 decrease for a 5 bedroom in Brighton,' said John Puma, Chief Operating Officer for apartment search website Places for Less."

"In downtown Boston, there are still ads for brand new luxury apartments but, on average, Puma says rents are down roughly $200 to $600 a month. 'We’ve seen 2 to 3 months rent free. Other incentives like free parking, waived deposits, waived pet fees, all kinds of incentives,' said Puma. 'We expect by this weekend that there will be another round of price reductions because it’s finally going to set in what September 1st looks like,' Puma said."

From NBC Boston in Massachusetts. "Faneuil Hall - an area usually bustling with tourists and street performers - has become a near ghost town as businesses are hit hard by the pandemic. At least 20 tenants have closed for good or have not reopened since the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic, according to the Boston Globe, representing nearly one-fourth of the properties. Tenants that are open also say business is down up to 90% from this time last year."

From Bisnow New York. "Between January and July, New York City investment sales dropped by half from the same period last year, the lowest it has been since at least 2015, according to the Real Estate Board of New York’s Biannual Investment Sales report. Hotels were the hardest hit asset class, according to the report, with investment sales volume down 81% year-over-year to $294M total. The price tag on these transactions — just under $49M — dropped by 37%."

"Multifamily investment sales dipped 51% year-over-year with a 50% year-over-year average price drop to $17M as apartment vacancies continue to rise and rent prices continue to drop across all boroughs. Since the onset of the crisis, real estate lobby groups have pushed for federal funding to aid the city's gaping budget holes."

From NPR on New York. "Adam Johnson enjoys going into the office. It helps that he works in one of the nicest buildings in Midtown Manhattan. He shares the sixth floor with a real estate showroom and an assortment of hedge funds. They all left months ago. 'I am the only person who's been coming in here since April 1st,' he says. 'This is what happens when people move out,' Johnson says, gesturing to a massive conference room with million-dollar views over Central Park."

"Jeff Blau, CEO of Related Companies, one of the world's largest commercial landlords, cites the example of companies like Google, which announced it will let employees continue to work from home until at least July 2021. When that happens, he says, temporary relocations can become permanent ones. Apartments lie vacant; restaurants and shops continue to fail. 'Everyone thinks that they're just going to come back here July of '21, or whatever the date might be, and find the city in the same shape it was,' Blau says. 'And that's just not going to be the case.'"

The Jacksonville Daily Record in Florida. "The multifamily investment sector in Northeast Florida slowed in March amid the uncertainty of the coronavirus pandemic. During the quarter, 715 vacant units were rented while communities completed 928 units. There are 4,928 apartment units under construction. 'The annual demand for new units in the market is roughly 2,000 and annual completions are around 3,300,' said Bradley Coe, senior director of Multifamily Investment Services with Colliers International Northeast Florida."

"Federal relief helped apartment owners 'ride this thing out,' he said. 'They are saying my collections are still good, my income is still good and occupancy is strong. Why should I sell an asset that may have to be discounted anywhere from eight to 12%?'"

The Las Vegas Sun in Nevada. "Danielle Eldridge, a Salvation Army case manager who works with financially distressed families in Henderson, said the next six months are likely to bring more pain for residents struggling to pay their rent or mortgage. 'Unfortunately, I see a lot of people losing their homes,' Eldridge said. 'Some people may have family members who can assist, but that usually can only go on for so long, especially in the economy that we’re in, nationwide. When they can’t receive assistance from family members any longer, they come to me.'"

"The state’s unemployment rate, which sits at just over 16%, skyrocketed in the spring after Nevada’s nonessential economy was closed. Since March, Eldridge said the city has helped more than 50 clients with housing payment assistance, although the assistance is limited to one month. 'A lot of the people I work with are very vulnerable,' Eldridge said. 'A lot of them have never asked for assistance in their lives. Right now, they’re having to swallow their pride and reach out. They’re close to being evicted or close to being homeless. For some, this is their last straw.'"

From Greenville News in South Carolina. "Evictions are back. In South Carolina, early September is expected to bring an alarming and possibly record number of evictions, said Mark Fessler, head of S.C. Legal Service's housing unit. It is being called a coming 'tsunami' of evictions and more people will likely lose their housing stability than at the peak of the 2008-2009 recession because this time the jobs lost are disproportionately from lower-income fields like hospitality and restaurants, said Bryan Grady, chief research officer of S.C. Housing, a state agency."

"'Everything we are seeing suggests it's going to be huge, 2008-2009? It's going to dwarf that,' said Adam Protheroe, a litigation attorney with S.C. Appleseed, a low-income advocacy group in the state. 'Everything that drives evictions in normal times is now on overdrive.'"

The Orange County Register. "California lawmakers released plans Friday, Aug. 28 for a new eviction moratorium that would protect tenants with COVID-related financial hardships from getting thrown out of their homes through January for not paying rent. Daniel Yukelson, chief executive of the Apartment Association of Greater Los Angeles, characterized it as 'another knee-jerk attempt to stabilize housing on the backs of rental property owners who are being forced to carry interest-free loans' for renters. 'This bill,' he said, 'will be a complete disaster for housing providers.'"

"'AB 3088 is a risky, high-stakes legislative solution that falls short of being fair and equitable,' said David Cordero, executive director of the Apartment Association of Orange County. 'AB 3088 will result in a wave of smaller rental property owners being driven into bankruptcy.'"

From Cal Matters. "California renters financially impacted by the coronavirus pandemic will be protected from eviction until at least next February, while small landlords will be offered some foreclosure protections, under a measure approved by lawmakers and signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom late Monday night. Without money coming from the state, small landlords may wonder how they expect to meet their mortgage payments if they can’t evict renters and re-rent apartments until next year."

"An earlier proposal embraced by tenants, from Assemblymember David Chiu, a Democrat from San Francisco, would have forced banks to offer mortgage forbearance options to struggling small landlords. Those provisions also weren’t included in the final bill. Banks and credit unions are also a powerful force in the Capitol. But their leverage on the eviction issue in particular was amplified by the constitutional limits of state law, and the threat of legal action."

"Both landlord and banking groups were skeptical that any type of compulsory mortgage forbearance would survive legal challenge. Both the state and federal constitutions have 'contract clauses' that limit government interference with private contracts like mortgages. California is also preempted from regulating certain banking activities in the federal government’s purview. Banking groups argued that any state incursion along the lines of mandatory mortgage forbearance for distressed small landlords could be dismantled in court."

"Some lawmakers voiced frustration that banking groups did not offer more in the spirit of compromise, considering the concessions made by tenants and landlords. 'The banks and the mortgage beholder are not doing a thing,' said Sen. Hannah-Beth Jackson, Democrat from Santa Barbara. 'And I can’t tell you how disappointed I am that they have not been willing to step up.'"