2024 Lewiston-Auburn Multi-Family Market: Resilient Growth, Statewide Challenges, and Investment Opportunities

By Noah Stebbins | Broker

Although interest rates, seller pricing expectations, and construction costs have impacted the commercial real estate market statewide, Lewiston-Auburn’s multi-family market has proven to be resilient throughout the first half of 2024.

The Lewiston-Auburn rental market has strong fundamentals, evident by sharp rent increases in recent years, with rents rising 18% from 2018 through 2022, and most notably in 2022 with rents rising 9.5% according to a recent market analysis by Camoin Associates. Furthermore, the exorbitant costs of living in the Greater Portland market have led to in-migration to Lewiston-Auburn, where renters are attracted to the lower costs of living. Consequently, this has caught the attention of investors, who would have previously shied away from the Lewiston-Auburn market, in search of deals with much better returns than one would find in other areas of the State.

According to a recent multi-family report published earlier this year by Vitalius Real Estate Group, in 2023, multi-family sale volume in Lewiston-Auburn increased by 8%, whereas sale volume in Saco & Biddeford decreased by -24%, and sale volume in Portland decreased by an astonishing -42%. This highlights the continuous rise of Lewiston-Auburn’s multi-family market in the face of economic hurdles.

According to sale data provided by the MLS and NECPE, this year alone (from 1/1/24 to 6/1/24) there have been a total of 9 sale transactions for 5+ unit multi-family buildings in Lewiston-Auburn with an average sale price per unit of $68,375.99/unit, while during this same time frame last year (1/1/23-6/1/23) there were 11 sale transactions for 5+ unit multi-family buildings with an average sale price per unit of $80,482.59/unit, which is a 17.7% decrease on a price per unit basis year over year. Although there are a lot of factors that determine the sale price per unit, this potentially shows that sellers are beginning to adjust to the current lending environment and adjust their asking prices accordingly, hence the steady sale volume. Currently (as of 6/5/24), there are 11 listings on MLS for 5+ unit multi-family buildings in Lewiston-Auburn with an average asking price per unit of $90,500.92/unit.

Looking ahead, I anticipate steady multi-family sale activity throughout 2024 and new multi-family development projects to break ground. Lewiston-Auburn is strategically located with easy access to Augusta, Brunswick, & Portland, which is why I expect new renters to continue to flock here. This will increase rents and lead to new multi-family development projects, while spurring interest from the investor community. If you’re a multi-family owner or investor in the multi-family space, it’s a good time to assess your strategy. The Boulos Company looks forward you helping you achieve your commercial real estate goals for the second half of 2024.

2024 Multi-Family Sale Transactions as of 6/1/24: The Boulos Company