**Seattle Multifamily Development Sees Momentum Shift to Suburban Markets**
The Seattle multifamily housing market is entering a new phase of development, with a noticeable shift in momentum away from the urban core and toward the region’s suburban areas. This trend is highlighted in Kidder Mathews’ 2025 Seattle Apartment Development Pipeline report.
While Seattle experienced an 82% increase in apartment inventory between 2010 and 2020, recent development activity shows more robust growth in suburban King County. Since 2021, suburban King has added 21,966 new units, surpassing the city of Seattle, which added 18,973 units in the same period.
Kitsap County is also experiencing notable expansion, growing its apartment inventory by 30% since 2020. The county now has one of the region’s most balanced development pipelines, with more than 10% of its future supply either under construction or fully approved.
Despite this growth, overall multifamily construction across the Puget Sound region remains subdued. Challenges such as rising construction costs, stricter lending conditions, and ongoing economic uncertainty have put pressure on new development. In Seattle alone, there are over 25,000 entitled units and an additional 25,900 units under review—yet just 5,051 units are currently under construction.
“Today’s market is not standing still, but recalibrating,” stated Dylan Simon, Executive Vice President at Kidder Mathews. “Once capital becomes more accessible and costs stabilize, a significant wave of entitled and in-review units will be ready to move.”
The shifting dynamics signal a broader transition in the Puget Sound apartment development landscape, with suburban areas poised to lead the next wave of multifamily growth.
