Multifamily Housing in the Capital Region
The Capital District Regional Planning Commission (CDRPC) has released On the Rise: Multifamily Housing in the Capital Region, a report examining more than a century of multifamily housing development across Albany, Rensselaer, Saratoga, and Schenectady counties. Using CoStar multifamily property records and U.S. Census data, the report examines changes in the scale and location of multifamily development over time, as well as the region’s current development pipeline.
Key findings from the report include:
- Multifamily development has shifted toward larger projects over time. Among developments containing five or more units, the average project size increased from approximately 15 units between 1900 and 1924 to nearly 85 units between 2000 and 2024, reflecting a long-term trend toward larger residential developments.
- Large apartment complexes now account for most new multifamily housing. Developments containing 50 or more units represented approximately 85% of all multifamily units constructed in the Capital Region between 2020 and 2024.
- Much of the region’s recent multifamily development has occurred outside traditional urban centers. Between 1900 and 1924, approximately 87% of large apartment construction occurred in the Capital Region’s core cities. Between 2000 and 2024, that share declined to approximately 33%, reflecting a broader pattern of suburbanization of all housing types.
- Multifamily housing is experiencing a historic resurgence in the Capital Region. More than 11,000 large multifamily apartment units are proposed, under construction, or in the development pipeline though 2029, potentially representing the largest wave of multifamily development in the region’s history.
Explore the full report: On The Rise: Multifamily Housing in the Capital Region 2026
