McLEAN, VA-Two organizations, the National Multi HousingCouncil and Freddie Mac, have releasedprojections about the multifamily market thatsuggest that demand growth is starting to slacken—but only by alittle bit. To be sure, the consensus of both organizations is thatdemand is still stronger than supply and that supply will find itdifficult to play catch up because financing remainsconstrained.

"Multifamily is still a very solid asset class with strongdemand," NMHC chief economist Mark Obrinsky tellsGlobeSt.com. Still, the question hovers in the background: Whenwill supply overcome demand? The best back-of-the-envelopecalculation: not for a very long time. "Demand for apartments byresidents will increase at a moderate rate for the near term, maybeeven for the intermediate term," Obrinsky says. "I think we haveseveral years of similar kinds of increases that we are seeingnow."

However, the NMHC quarterly survey did capture a distinct dropin demand--the Market Tightness Index portion ofits survey declined to 56 from 76. (A readingabove 50 indicates that, on balance, apartment markets around thecountry are getting tighter; a reading below 50 indicates thatmarket conditions are getting looser; and a reading of 50 indicatesthat market conditions are unchanged).