Violent crime in Memphis has dropped more than 40% in 2026 compared to last year, with similar major declines in robbery, motor vehicle theft, and homicide. This isn’t just a short-term improvement—it reflects a coordinated, long-term effort between local, state, and federal agencies that experts are calling a lasting “blueprint for other cities.”

For multifamily investors, this shift is meaningful:

Stronger demand and rent growth potential
As safety improves, Memphis is getting more job announcements currently 10,000 new jobs announced & planned with 37 major relocation projects considering Memphis that could create another 20,000 new jobs, renters with nice incomes will be drawn to the city, expanding the tenant base and supporting increasing rents.  

Early-mover advantage
Memphis is still priced below most major comparable markets, giving investors a chance to enter ahead of broader perception changes. Some have described it as an early expansion cycle.  

Consistent workforce housing demand
Affordability combined with improving conditions continues to attract residents, especially in B and C-class properties attracting the young professionals in the New Digital Delta with firms like Google and Elon Musk opening huge new data centers investing over 100 billion dollars in the Memphis area.  

Long-term stability
As of last week, 398 of the organized bad guys creating 80% of the crime are facing  Federal Charges which have a 99% conviction rate and no time off for good behavior.  So, they are gone! 

Rising confidence on the ground
Residents are already noticing the difference, an early sign of continued neighborhood and market improvement.

Bottom line:
Memphis is shifting into a high-upside growth market, where improving safety and strong fundamentals are aligning—making now an attractive time for apartment investors to take a closer look.

Click here to see all available investment opportunities.

— Steve Woodyard

Leveraging Crexi PRO has helped us market smarter, connect with qualified buyers and tenants, and close deals more efficiently with strong data and exposure behind every listing. Grateful for the partnership.

The new .25 rate cut offers strong potential for real estate improvements in the Memphis area, primarily through relief on borrowing costs, but it won’t resolve deep-rooted challenges like housing shortages that some politicians are saying Memphis might soon face. Why shortages?

• New Jobs: Google, Nvidia, Elon Musk, Grok, St. Jude’s Hospital, Neural Nexus, SK On, and other world-renowned names. The Digital Delta Initiative along with strong overall fundamentals from Medical, Logistics and other Memphis industry has the potential to create and IS creating thousands of new jobs. 
• Memphis Mayor Paul Young: has emphasized the city’s need for more quality rental units, noting limited new supply and new job growth. 
• Demand Dynamics: Lower interest rates will boost buyer demand, drawing sidelined investors back and supporting real estate prices for modest to strong growth.
• Supply Dynamics: On the supply side, the modest rate decrease is not enough to encourage most developers and builders to ramp up construction. 
• Broader Market Sentiment: Fed chair Jerome Powell warned that “housing is going to be a problem” in the US without policy tools to address supply constraints.
• Roadblocks to Construction: Rising prices of lumber, concrete, and steel along with new labor shortages.
• Market Cycle Investment: Market cycles reward investors who act BEFORE headlines bemoan supply shortages.

Just announced! Houston company plans to turn two blocks of downtown Memphis into a tech hub.

— Steve Woodyard, CCIM

Recently, we mailed out WRC updates—letters, postcards, emails of all of us—to clients and friends. I didn’t expect much beyond the usual replies. But then, I got the kind of response that stops you in your tracks.

A client from the 1980s gave me a call. His name is Seymour D., from Los Angeles, CA. Seymour is now 98 years old, still an active CPA, still driving in LA, and his wife of many years is doing well.

He had seen that both of my children, Worth and Grayson, have joined our firm and that we’re growing with two new brokers with years of experience. And then he said something that really hit me:

“You were about your children’s age when you sold my 200-unit apartment complex .”

Back then, Seymour was the savvy investor and experienced CPA from LA. And I? I was a young, green kid from Ole Miss by way of Arkansas—what some might call a redneck—trying to break into the apartment world in Memphis. I’d saved just enough from side jobs in high school and college to pay rent for a year and maybe afford a few dates on the weekends.  I had to make it work as there was no safety net.

Seymour took a chance on me. He was a huge part of my early success.

And now, decades later, he picked up the phone just to say hello. I was stunned. Grateful. Moved. It brought a tear to my eye.

Thank you for reaching out, Seymour. You reminded me how meaningful a simple connection can be—even after all these years.

Maybe this is our nudge to check in on someone who once made a difference in our own story. You never know what kind of joy it might bring back.

By Blaise Tomazic

CoStar Analytics

January 15, 2025 | 3:26 P.M.

The multifamily market in Memphis, Tennessee, ended 2024 on a high note, with annual apartment demand outpacing supply for the first time since 2021. And with a slowing construction pipeline anticipated, rent growth and vacancy are expected to improve in 2025.

Increasing demand saw net absorption — the difference between move-in and move-outs — reach 1,700 units last year, an improvement from negative 800 in 2023 and the third-highest amount in the past 10 years.

At the end of the year, the vacancy rate in Memphis was 13.6%, a 30-basis point improvement from the prior year, as commercial property segments saw vacancy decline across the board.

The multifamily market broke a two-year streak of declining demand, which saw its vacancy rate rise by 460 basis points from the beginning of 2022 through the end of 2023, peaking at 13.9%.

The largest increase in demand occurred among one- and two-star properties as consumer sentiment continued to rise and the pace of inflation slowed. These properties totaled just over 400 units of absorption in 2024, a large improvement from negative 700 units the previous year. This rise in demand pushed the vacancy rate among these properties down to 15.9%, a 140-basis point improvement from 2023’s year-end number.

Along with rising demand was a slowing development pipeline. High borrowing costs and tighter lending requirements limited the number of units under construction in Memphis at the end of 2024 to 1,400, a five-year low. As a result, 2025 is expected to see a decline in completions by about 25% from 2024’s level.

Despite improving demand, rent growth in Memphis continued to lag the national average. In 2024, rents increased 0.1%, the lowest level in the past 10 years, compared to 1% for the national average. The three-star property segment saw the most rent growth, at 1.5%, while the one-and-two-star segment and the four-and-five-star cohort posted annual declines.

With about 1,300 new apartments projected to open this year, slowing development will ease some of the supply-side pressures from the past two years. As a result, the apartment market’s vacancy rate will likely decline throughout the year as demand is expected to rise.

Woodyard Realty Corp has now awarded seven scholarships, making a meaningful difference in the lives of young individuals who are eager to positively impact others in the Memphis community. Our motivation stems from the biblical principles in 2 Corinthians, where the Apostle Paul invested in Timothy and others, who in turn invested in the lives of others—creating a powerful ripple effect of discipleship. We believe in investing in people to improve our city and communities, knowing that they will go on to invest in others. It’s a cycle of generosity that benefits everyone and truly is the gift that keeps on giving!

–Steve Woodyard

Click below to read Mallory’s story:

Partnering with Give901 and cityCurrent, Woodyard Realty was proud to award scholarships to outstanding students and professionals in Memphis once again this year.

Click below to read Anjessica’s story: