Confidence in the market for new multifamily housing increased year-over-year in the second quarter, according to the Multifamily Market Survey (MMS) released recently by the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB). The MMS produces two separate indices. The Multifamily Production Index (MPI) had a reading of 46, up two points year-over-year, while the Multifamily Occupancy Index (MOI) had a reading of 82, up one point year-over-year. The index and all its components are scaled so that a number below 50 indicates that more respondents report conditions are poor than report conditions are good. 

The MPI measures builder and developer sentiment about current production conditions. The MOI measures the multifamily housing industry’s perception of occupancies.