Small balance multifamily loans typically range between $1-5 million and finance small and mid-cap apartment properties of 5-50 units. Data shows that small apartment buildings accommodate more lower-income households, with 63% earning below $50k compared to 54% in large buildings. Nearly 33% of all working-age US households live in small apartment properties, second only to single-family rentals. Working-age households in small apartment buildings earn on average $50k, significantly less than those in single-family rentals or large apartment buildings.

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Source: arbor.com/blog/small-apartment-urban-workforce-housing
Small balance multifamily loans are typically between $1 million and $5 million. Chandan
Economics defines small-cap properties as 5 to 19 units, mid-cap properties as 20 to 50
units, and large-cap properties as larger than 50 units. Both small-cap and mid-cap
properties can fall into the small balance spectrum.
All data is sourced from the American Community Survey (ACS), unless otherwise stated.
ACS statistics are sample-based estimates of the compositional profile of the total
population in the given year of data collection, and include a margin of error.
Distribution of Households by Average Household Income: 2016
Source: Chandan Economics, American Community Survey, 2016
Small Apartment Buildings Accommodate Households in the Lower Income Brackets
• About 63% of working-age households in small properties earned below $50,000,
compared to 54% in large buildings.
• In contrast, 20% of large apartment building households earned more than
$100,000 annually.
Small Apartment Buildings Large Apartment Buildings
Below $50,000
80%
60%
40%
20%
0%
$50,000-$99,999 $100,000-$149,999 Over $150,000
Householder Age Below 65 Years
Distribution of Rental Households by Householder Age
Across Asset Class: 2016
Source: Chandan Economics, American Community Survey, 2016
• The significant contribution of small buildings to urban workforce housing can be
gauged by the fact that nearly 33% of all U.S. working-age households lived in small
properties.
• This is second only to the more suburban-oriented single-family rentals at 38%.
Below 65 years 65 years and Over
Single-Family
Rentals
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
Duplex-Quadruplex
Buildings
Small Apartment
Buildings
Large Apartment
Buildings
Average Income Levels of Rental Households
• Working-age households in small properties earned around $50,000, significantly
less compared to similar households in single-family and large apartment building
rentals.
• Large building working-age households earned around $67,000 on average,
measuring 10% higher compared to their single-family rental counterparts.
Average Household Income Across Rental Units by
Age of Householder: 2016
Below 65 years 65 years and Over
Single-Family
Rentals
Source: Chandan Economics, American Community Survey, 2016
$70,000
$60,000
$50,000
$40,000
$30,000
Duplex-Quadruplex
Buildings
Small Apartment
Buildings
Large Apartment
Buildings
Small Apartment
Buildings Vital for
Urban Workforce
Housing
Arbor Realty Trust
Household income data underscores the importance of small apartment buildings in
maintaining workforce housing options, and thereby, the economic dynamism of cities.