Austin apartment permits have plummeted since the pandemic
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Permits for multifamily housing have dropped below pandemic-era levels across the country, according to Redfin, with Austin seeing among the most dramatic fall-offs.
Why it matters: Apartment construction influences housing affordability in Austin, where a wave of new apartments ultimately helped curb rent hikes.
- The construction slowdown, which tariffs could prolong, risks reigniting rent inflation.
The big picture: The rise of remote work during the pandemic allowed Americans to relocate to Austin and other cities, leading to a surge in rental demand.
- Builders ramped up construction in response — but now, rents are flattening and borrowing costs are high, making building less attractive.
By the numbers: Developers got permits to build an average of 64.5 multifamily units per 10,000 people in greater Austin from April 2024 to March 2025, according to Redfin's analysis of Census Bureau data.
- That's down from the nearly 95 multifamily units per 10,000 people during the pandemic surge.
Reality check: Austin is still issuing more multifamily permits — buildings with five or more units — than any other metro Redfin analyzed.
- The local rate of multifamily building permits granted outstrips the national rate of 12.4 multifamily units per 10,000 people in recent months.
State of play: The median asking rent in Austin dropped 10.7% year over year to $1,420 in March — $379 below its record high.
- That was the largest decline in percentage among the 44 major U.S. metropolitan areas Redfin analyzed this spring.
Zoom out: 63% of major metros are seeing fewer units approved per 10,000 people compared to the pandemic era.
What they're saying: Builders nationwide are "pumping the brakes because elevated interest rates are making many projects prohibitively expensive," Redfin senior economist Sheharyar Bokhari wrote in the report.
What's next: Mayor Kirk Watson is offering a resolution at Thursday's City Council meeting ordering city officials to re-examine incentive programs that allow developers to build taller buildings in exchange for affordable housing.
- "My hope is that we can have a robust and meaningful discussion on how to achieve more density and more affordable housing that fits the communities that make Austin, Austin," Watson wrote in his Watson Wire newsletter on Monday.