The multifamily sales and rental market seemed to settle in during 2025, signaling an end to dramatic increases over the last decade, according to a report on the 2025 southern Maine multi-family market released by Brit Vitalius of Vitalius Real Estate Group.
“Flat rental rates have caused buyers to be more cautious when considering the upside in purchase opportunities,” Vitalius wrote, referring to buyers of multi-family properties. “In addition, the rising expenses and an expectation of flat interest rates add to a much more sober assessment of value today and for the foreseeable future.”
The group released reports on the multi-family, condo and single-family market segments in southern and midcoast Maine.
Fall-through deals
In the multi-family segment, buyer cautiousness was reflected in longer days on market, increased level of “fall-through” deals and the bumpiness of the sales process, Vitalius said.
“In 2025, our team felt like every property had to be sold twice,” Vitalius said. “For each of our listings, the property would go under contact with an enthusiastic buyer only to have the deal terminated during the due diligence based on no significantly new information.”
Reasons for termination included the cost of planned renovations and details around rent control, “but most could generally be summarized as cold feet and second guessing,” he continued. “The property would then go back on the market, sometimes waiting another month or more before eventually finding a good buyer and ultimately still selling near the original price.”
Investors are ready
Still, the report said, the multifamily market appears to be settling into a period of stabilization.
“Properties that were optimized for presentation was one of the defining factors in a successful 2025 sale,” said Kayla Donoghue, a Vitalius broker. “Sellers who were organized, realistic and ready to execute achieved their desired outcomes.”
Investors are ready to deploy capital, after waiting a few years for interest rates to come down and, more recently for clarity around evolving tariff and broader economic policy, said broker Chris Sullivan.
“We’re back to routinely fielding calls from both active and previously dormant investors who have capital they’re ready to deploy,” Sullivan said. “Rather than waiting for perfect conditions, they are actively underwriting opportunities, weighing risk appropriately and looking to put money to work, pitfalls and all.”
Single-family
In 2025, the single-family market moved toward more stabilization and equity between buyers and sellers in certain markets, although there are still highly competitive areas around Portland, according to the single-family report.
“Maine as a whole was in line with national averages on median sales price, while Cumberland County saw median sales prices at 50% more than both the state and national prices,” the report said.
The midcoast region saw a healthy real estate market in 2025, the report said: “Sales were steady and waterfront properties were still getting record high prices while mid-level inventory remained steady with little price appreciation from 2024.”
Overall, the expectation for 2026 is that buyers are gaining traction and returning to a more normal buying environment. For sellers, property presentation and pricing strategy are playing a crucial role in sales.
“Although this remains a challenging environment historically for first-time homebuyers, I was encouraged to see this trend reflected differently within my own business in 2025,” said broker Francesca Magno-Green. “Eight of my transactions involved first-time buyers, and seven of those clients were able to conduct full home inspections as part of their purchase.”
Condos
In the condo market, overall sales volume fell roughly 20% year over year, driven primarily by limited new inventory rather than softening demand, wrote broker Elise Loschiavo.
Only a fraction of new construction units that came online in 2024 were available for sale in 2025.
Price per square foot for non-new construction remained essentially flat, reflecting value stability despite lower volume.
Unsold inventory rose notably, with about 24% of all condo listings failing to sell — a higher share than in recent years.
Days on market increased from roughly one week in 2024 to nearly three weeks in 2025.
Moving forward, the segment could see flat to modest condo price appreciation, Loschiavo said.
“The tone of the market will feel more balanced and measured. Values on a price-per-square-foot basis should generally hold steady,” she wrote.
