Buffalo multifamily market, October 2026

Landlords have the edge in Buffalo, and it is mixed: asking rents are up 3.7% on a year, while jobs slipped 0.1%.

Updated October 31, 2026 · from Zillow, BLS and the US Census Bureau

+3.7%

Asking rent, year over year

Zillow · September 2026

-0.1%

Jobs, year over year

BLS · September 2026, preliminary

3.3%YEARLY

Vacancy

Census · 2024 count

What is moving now

Asking rents are up 3.7% on a year to September 2026, which is the figure the condition is read from. Jobs are down 0.1% over the same year to September 2026, a first release the BLS revises the following month. Asking rents are climbing but job growth has cooled (September 2026).

The backdrop

These are yearly Census counts, not this month's: 3.3% of rentals sat empty in 2024, permits for new apartments were down 13% in 2025, more people moved out than in in 2025, and the typical rent was $1,114 a month in 2024. They are the background the monthly figures move against, and they are the newest the Census has published.

See every figure behind this read

Open the live Buffalo read →

We watch Buffalo for you.

The day asking rent growth (now +3.7%) or job growth (now -0.1%) moves half a point, you get an email. Plus two years of history and the report.

Track Buffalo, $39/month

Cancel anytime. Every market read stays free.

Common questions about Buffalo

Answered from the data, updated October 31, 2026

Is the Buffalo rental market tight or soft right now?

In Buffalo right now, landlords have the edge, and it is mixed.

Which way is the Buffalo market heading?

Buffalo is mixed right now, as asking rents firm over the past year (Zillow ZORI, monthly).

Is Buffalo a landlord's or a renter's market?

Buffalo is a landlord's market right now: landlords have the edge, and it is mixed.

What is the vacancy rate in Buffalo?

Vacancy in Buffalo is 3.3% in the 2024 count, a yearly snapshot rather than a monthly reading (US Census Bureau).

How much have Buffalo rents changed?

Asking rents in Buffalo are up 3.7% over the past year (Zillow ZORI, monthly, latest Sep 2026).

Recent coverage

Daily, from the MetroSgnl news feed. Headlines only.

Battery-powered apartment complex in New York aims to solve three issues - and save residents cashThe Independent

3.75-MWh battery system installed indoors at NY affordable housing buildingSolar Power World

Plans for vacant Buffalo building to become affordable housing and social spaceWGRZ

Hertel Avenue apartments sell for $1.895 millionAudacy

Buffalo councilmember pushes for tenant protections after apartment water shutoffWKBW

Judge finds Dobucki guilty of 55 housing code violationsWGRZ

See all Buffalo news →

Data: Zillow ZORI, BLS, US Census Bureau, FRED, and the MetroSgnl news feed. Recomputed daily. Market information only, not investment advice.
Methodology ↗ · All insights ↗