According to this article in the Wall Street Journal, new housing construction in the US rose to its highest level since 2007, and multifamily construction had a lot to do with it:
Nonetheless, housing construction appears on track to have a slightly better year than many economists had predicted, thanks in part to surprisingly strong multifamily growth.
Overall starts grew by 11% in the first five months of 2018 compared with the same period a year earlier. Multifamily starts rose 13.3% during that period, while single-family starts rose 9.8%.
But, there are challenges:
Still, builders face headwinds in the coming months. Rising lumber prices have added nearly $9,000 to the cost of a new home since January 2017, according to the National Association of Home Builders, which reported on Monday that builder confidence ticked down slightly in June.