Hardware Retailing says multifamily resilient

Hardware Retailing’s June 2 report pointed to a split housing market in the first quarter of 2026: single-family construction weakened across the United States, while multifamily activity increased in most regions. The trade outlet cited new National Association of Home Builders data showing that builders pulled back on single-family work in all four major U.S. regions. NAHB said multifamily construction, measured in buildings with five or more units, expanded in three of the four regions in the same period. The figures added to a broader picture of a housing market still contending with borrowing costs, materials inflation and economic uncertainty. ### What exactly did the new data show? NAHB said on June 2 that single-family construction declined in the Northeast, Midwest, South and West in the first quarter of 2026. The group tied the pullback to economic uncertainty, high material costs and elevated interest rates. Multifamily construction moved differently. NAHB said buildings with five or more units posted gains in most regions, which is the pattern Hardware Retailing described as resilient. ### Which parts of the country were hit on the single-family side? The NAHB release said the single-family slowdown was nationwide rather than concentrated in one pocket of the country. That matters because the first-quarter declines covered all four census regions, not just the higher-cost coastal markets. Hardware Retailing framed that contrast directly in its June 2 coverage, pairing region-wide single-family declines with stronger multifamily readings in most areas. The trade publication’s account relied on the NAHB regional breakdown for the first quarter. ### Why did NAHB say builders pulled back? NAHB said economic uncertainty, high material costs and elevated interest rates weighed on single-family construction in the quarter. Those are the reasons the association gave in its June 2 release accompanying the regional data. Interest rates remain central to the construction outlook because financing costs affect both builders and buyers. Material prices also continue to shape project economics, especially for single-family homes where lot, labor and input costs are absorbed unit by unit rather than spread across a larger apartment project. ### Why was multifamily holding up better? NAHB’s data showed multifamily growth in most regions, but the group’s June 2 release did not present that as a broad housing rebound. Instead, the figures showed that apartment and other larger-unit construction was performing better than single-family in the first quarter. Hardware Retailing used the word “resilient” to describe that performance. In context, the term referred to relative strength: multifamily was growing in most regions while single-family was declining everywhere. ### What does this mean for people who follow housing and home improvement? The June 2 figures suggest the construction market is not moving in one direction across all housing types. Single-family builders are facing a tougher environment, according to NAHB, while multifamily developers have been more active in most regions. For retailers, suppliers and contractors tied to residential building, that split matters because product demand often differs by housing type. Apartment construction can support volume in categories tied to unit turnover and large-scale installations, while a single-family slowdown can weigh on products linked to new detached-home starts. ### What should readers watch next? NAHB’s next releases on housing starts, builder sentiment and regional construction activity will show whether the first-quarter pattern continued into the spring and summer. Hardware Retailing’s June 2 article remains the clearest trade-press summary of the latest regional split, and NAHB’s June 2 release is the primary source for the underlying first-quarter data.