With multifamily rents beginning to soften, it’s more important than ever to find the best property management company for your community, regardless of its size. The difference between the right and wrong company can directly impact your multifamily investment’s bottom line.

Communities with effective property management have significantly better retention — now more important than ever before. A 2022 property management trends report put the cost of losing a resident at $3,976. In other words, failing to keep your residents can make a huge difference in your investment’s profitability.

Of course, it doesn’t all come down to your property manager. Still, the people working with your assets are in the best position to have a meaningful impact on your community’s resident experience.

We’ve compiled our ranking of property management companies for 2023. For our calculations, we utilized data from the National Multifamily Housing Council. The data was recalibrated to focus not only on those firms with the largest portfolios but those property managers with the fastest-growing portfolios.

The Top Property Management Companies of 2023

15. MAA

Also known as Mid-America Apartment Communities, MAA is a publicly traded real estate investment trust headquartered outside of Memphis, Tennessee. The company, led by Eric Bolton, focuses on the acquisition, development, and management of multifamily properties across the country. MAA’s management portfolio includes a diverse mix of assets, from garden-style apartments to high-rise buildings across the country.

In 2022, MAA’s portfolio topped 100,000 units under management, though this figure had shrunk by half a percentage point compared to the previous year. Nevertheless, the company’s size and scale of operations land it in 15th place on our list.

14. AvalonBay Communities

Based in Virginia, AvalonBay Communities managed close to 81,000 multifamily units spread across a handful of markets. Led by Timothy Naughton, the REIT has grown at a steady pace in recent years as it continues to develop high-end buildings in primary markets.

Its largest portfolios are in Boston, the Washington, D.C. area, and Seattle, where the company focuses primarily on Class A, luxury communities. The equity REIT owns all of the assets in its management arm’s portfolio. Last year, AvalonBay’s management portfolio expanded by 1%.

13. Morgan Properties

Based in King of Prussia, Pennsylvania, Morgan Properties boasted close to 100,000 units last year, thanks to a sizable, 1.8% year-over-year growth. The company’s portfolio includes a wide range of assets, from student housing to garden-style communities. While the group is incredibly active in the wider Philadelphia area, it also is a major operator of multifamily properties in a number of other major markets, including Baltimore and Washington, D.C.

12. WinnCompanies

Boston-based WinnCompanies takes 12th place on our ranking. The firm had around 103,000 units, with an annual growth rate similar to Morgan Properties’ — 1.8%. The majority of the organization’s portfolio is made up of affordable housing communities, but the company has expanded its focus in recent years with the addition of a number of higher-end market-rate properties.

11. Bozzuto

A developer and property manager, Bozzuto has a portfolio of more than 80,000 units across 12 states. The company also manages close to 3 million square feet of retail space. The firm boasted an impressive, 4.1% growth rate for its multifamily assets under management coming into 2022.

Based in the Washington, D.C. suburb of Greenbelt, Maryland, Bozzuto’s focus is nationwide — but its home market remains the largest and most important, comprising close to half of its overall portfolio. 

10. Lincoln Property Company

Dallas-based Lincoln Property Company ranked 11th on our 2023 list. The firm has a massive portfolio of more than 210,000 units — the second-highest of all the companies ranked — but its presence has effectively remained unchanged over the past year.

While LPC may not have a significant focus on the western U.S., the company’s presence in Midwestern, Southern, and Eastern markets is strong. Close to home, the firm’s portfolio tops 20,000 units, or roughly 10% of its total, with significant presence in other Texan markets as well as in Atlanta, Chicago, and Nashville.

9. Cushman & Wakefield

Perhaps better known for its brokerage services in all sectors of commercial real estate, Cushman & Wakefield quickly shot up in the multifamily property management sector with its March 2020 acquisition of Pinnacle Property Management, at the time the third-largest property management company in the U.S. Cushman & Wakefield’s property management portfolio today spans more than 170,000 units.

8. BH

BH Companies, based in Des Moines, Iowa, comes in sixth place, owing to a sizable portfolio of more than 106,000 units, plus a solid, steady growth of 6.2% compared to the previous year. The group does not manage that many units close to home, instead focusing on larger metros from Chicago to the Dallas-Fort Worth area. BH is involved with assets across the quality spectrum, from luxury buildings in gateway cities to workforce housing in smaller secondary and tertiary markets.

7. FPI Management

Headquartered outside of Sacramento, California, FPI Management ranks seventh on our list with a portfolio of more than 140,000 units and an annual growth rate above 8%.

The company is largely focused on California and other western markets though it operates in 15 states, from Alaska to Florida. FPI handles a diverse mix of properties, from affordable housing to luxury communities.

6. Apartment Management Consultants

More commonly known as AMC, Apartment Management Consultants has grown by focusing on key secondary markets that have experienced significant population growth and, subsequently, rent increases. The group has its largest presence in markets like Salt Lake City, Denver, Las Vegas, and Phoenix. 

Founded just outside Salt Lake City in 2000, the company has expanded beyond property management to offer services ranging from training programs to accounting functions for multifamily properties.

5. Avenue5 Residential

Headquartered in Seattle, Avenue5 Residential lands in seventh place with a portfolio of nearly 87,000 units and a rapid growth rate of close to 15% over the year. The firm, led by President & CEO Chip Watts, doesn’t just limit itself to multifamily management — it also handles single-family rental homes as well. Avenue5 began as a management arm for owned properties, expanding in 2016 to offer third-party services.

4. Highmark Residential

Although Highmark’s portfolio size is the smallest on our list at a little under 80,000 units, the company has grown rapidly, boasting an incredible 106% year-over-year growth. The company’s portfolio is largely focused in the Southeast and the Mid-Atlantic regions.

An affiliate of Starwood Capital Group, the company has an outsized presence in the state of Florida, where it manages around 40,000 units. While Highmark primarily manages assets owned solely by Starwood, the firm does appear to have some involvement with other multifamily investors as well.

3. RPM Living

A full-service investment, development, and property management company, RPM Living lands in second place, boasting a portfolio of 112,872 units across more than 20 states. While this alone is enough to land RPM in our rankings, it also expanded its management footprint by a staggering 38% between 2021 and 2022.

Based in Austin, RPM Living has grown organically but also through a series of key acquisitions. In 2020 and 2021, the group acquired Maverick Residential and Pace Realty, expanding into major markets like Phoenix and into different multifamily asset types, including seniors and student housing. Then, in early 2021, RPM merged with Atlanta’s CF Real Estate Services, driving even further growth.

2. Asset Living

Asset Living takes second place on our ranking for good reason: While its portfolio is an impressive 160,000 units, its growth has been breathtaking at close to 55% in a one-year period. The third-party property manager operates in 40 states, handling everything from build-to-rent to student housing assets, in addition to more traditional multifamily and affordable communities.

1. Greystar

Greystar takes first place in our ranking this year. While its 4.4% growth may seem relatively unremarkable, such growth is profound, given the size of its 700,000-unit portfolio. Greystar isn’t just limited to the U.S., either: The company operates in South America and Europe as well.

The organization has acquired many property management companies in the past, and it continues to do so on both sides of the ocean. In December 2022, Greystar closed the acquisition of Student Roost, a major provider of student housing in the United Kingdom. The company is also beginning to expand into the short-term rental market, partnering with Airbnb.

Conclusion

Although the multifamily sector is facing many headwinds, the asset class remains a solid investment choice for many, even those without a deep level of experience in operating apartment buildings. Many larger and less experienced investors opt to utilize a major property management company to oversee the day-to-day operations of a community — especially if it’s not close to home.

While our list did not include any strong local multifamily property managers, don’t forget to look within your own market when selecting which company will operate your next investment. One key thing to remember, however, is that size isn’t everything — choosing a property management company that aligns with your investment strategy and asset type is the key to success.

Looking for last year's ranking? Find our 2022 list here.