You can fit more apartments into a building and still make the deal worse. Reduce units too far, and you may fit in more apartments but make them harder to live in and lease. More units on paper do not automatically lead to better returns.
Unit Size Alone Does Not Tell the Story
The median multifamily unit started in Q2 2026 measured 1,008 square feet. Recent quarters show that unit sizes can fluctuate rather than follow a single steady trend.
National data is a useful benchmark, but it cannot determine the right size for a specific project. Developers still need to test unit size against local rents, renter expectations, competing properties, and unit mix.
Rental Development Is Shaping Unit Size
Built-for-rent units accounted for 93% of multifamily starts in Q2 2026, according to NAHB’s analysis of U.S. Census Bureau data. Developers need to know which unit types drive demand, which layouts support projected rents, and what residents lose when space is removed.
Make Every Square Foot Earn Its Place
Reducing unit size should start with wasted space, not useful space.
First, look at oversized corridors, awkward room shapes, poor furniture placement, excessive circulation, oversized shafts, and structural layouts that reduce usable area.
The goal is to remove square footage without hurting livability, rent performance, or building efficiency.
Before reducing a unit, test five things.
Design Smaller Units Smarter
BASE4 tests unit planning and building efficiency as a single decision before square footage and coordination problems become embedded in the documents.
Our integrated team helps developers:
- Compare unit mixes and test fits against building yield
- Protect furniture layouts, storage, circulation, and accessibility
- Align architectural planning with structural and MEP systems
- Model unit layouts with structure and MEP before design problems are repeated across the building
- Evaluate cost, constructability, and prefab opportunities together
Before reducing unit sizes, confirm that the change improves the project instead of shifting the problem elsewhere. BASE4 can help find the right balance between density, livability, and building efficiency.
Thank you,
Blair Hildahl
BASE4 Principal
608.304.5228
BlairH@base-4.com
