NAA Insights: How to Use Data to Explain Rising Costs to Your Residents

March 23, 2026

Podcasts Featured National Operations & Technology

MHN’s Laura Valean speaks with NAA’s Leah Cuffy about communicating expenses, margins and market realities with greater transparency and context.

Headshots of Leah Cuffy and Laura Valean — Cuffy talks to Valean about the multiple ways property owners and managers can use NAA’s Dollar of Rent tool to bring clarity to conversations around rising operating costs. *Image by ewg3D/iStockphoto.com*

At a time when housing affordability debates are often driven more by perception than data, taking a closer look at what’s actually behind a rent payment matters more than ever. The National Apartment Association’s Dollar of Rent tool provides a clear, data-driven view of the expenses tied to operating a multifamily property, drawing on tens of thousands of audited, property-level financial statements.

In this episode of NAA Insights, host Laura Valean, senior editor at Multi-Housing News, sits down with Leah Cuffy, director of advocacy research at NAA, to explore how the tool can be used in practice. From helping property managers communicate rent increases more clearly to enabling owners and operators to bring localized data into policy discussions, the tool is designed to ground conversations in facts rather than assumptions.

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With the ability to drill down by congressional district, metro area and property type, it also challenges a common narrative: Rising rents translate directly into higher profits. In reality, the data shows that roughly 89 cents of every rent dollar goes toward operating costs before any return reaches the owner. That insight alone is reshaping conversations, from legislative hearings to onsite interactions with residents. For leasing teams and property managers, the tool provides a way to explain rising costs with greater clarity and transparency, helping build trust rather than tension.

For multifamily professionals navigating today’s operating environment, this episode offers both context and a practical framework for more informed conversations around rent.

In this podcast, Cuffy said that NAA’s Dollar of Rent tool provides a clear, credible answer to a simple question: Where does the rent dollar actually go? Image courtesy of NAA

Here’s what you’ll hear when you press play: