Fund Deadlines Keep Multifamily Properties Coming to Market
Some apartment owners are selling because their funds are running out of time, rather than the market offering an attractive exit. For buyers able to raise capital, those deadlines can create acquisition opportunities. For sellers, the pressure puts a premium on property performance and financial records that can withstand scrutiny.
That divide shaped the discussion at GlobeSt.'s Multifamily Owners Forum 2026 last week, where executives described a market in which raising equity remains difficult and owners have more control over operating results than the conditions governing their next transaction.
The session, "Beyond the Balance Sheet: Dispositions, Acquisitions & Strategic Asset Management," was moderated by Kamran Paydar, first vice president at CBRE Group.
Fund Deadlines Drive Some Sales
Jerome Fink, managing partner at The Bascom Group, said raising capital has become exceptionally difficult. Some institutional investors are unresponsive, while others question the case for real estate when stocks are delivering strong returns.
Yet owners cannot always wait for a better market to sell. A fund approaching the end of its term may need to dispose of assets regardless of whether the timing suits the owner. Other investors need to sell one investment to move capital into another.
Those pressures help explain why properties come to market even when sellers would otherwise prefer to hold. They also give buyers a reason to keep evaluating deals despite the difficulty of closing transactions.
Buyers Apply Different Tests to Different Assets
At MG Properties, the acquisition search spans Class A towers and older suburban properties, but the underwriting approach changes with the asset.
Paul Kaseburg, the firm's chief investment officer, said the firm uses replacement cost to evaluate newer buildings. Older properties receive greater scrutiny on yield.
The capital behind a purchase also matters. Different capital sources pursue different strategies, Kaseburg said, influencing which opportunities are a fit.
MG continues to submit offers on properties that meet its criteria, knowing many will not lead to a transaction. Despite the market's challenges, Kaseburg expressed optimism that liquidity could improve in the coming year.
Sale Preparation Starts With Daily Operations
For owners considering an exit, preparation extends beyond improving the most recent quarter's results.
Jon Tullo, executive vice president of client services at Apartment Management Consultants, said sellers need clean, normalized financial statements with clear explanations across the full set of financials—not just the trailing three months.
That work goes hand in hand with property management. Owners cannot control interest rates or capital markets, Tullo said, but they can influence net operating income through everyday execution: answering calls, conducting tours and following up with prospective residents.
He also cautioned against renovating for an assumed future market rather than addressing current needs.
The same emphasis on preparation carries into the transaction itself. Kaseburg said resolving outstanding issues in advance and making a deal as clean and straightforward as possible can help the process.
AI Begins to Save Time on Investment Work
MG Properties is also finding ways to reduce the time spent on financial and market analysis.
After about 18 months of work, the company has begun seeing time savings from artificial intelligence applications that reclassify financials, load pro formas and conduct rent comparisons, Kaseburg said.
The tools still require human review to ensure accuracy. For MG, the benefit so far is the time saved on those tasks, not eliminating the need to check the results.
Check back with GlobeSt.com for more from the Multifamily Owners Forum.
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Source: GlobeSt/ALM