Government-sponsored housing finance giant Freddie Mac is returning to the commercial mortgage-backed securities market as strong fundamentals push apartment deals to record-breaking levels.

Multifamily property sales surged in the second half of 2021 and accounted for more than $1 out of every $3 spent in the fourth quarter, according to preliminary CoStar data.

A pair of multifamily sales totaling $30 million on Chic ago’s South Side and its western suburb of Clarendon Hills reflect investors’ growing appetite for apartments, a stark contrast to the city’s pandemic-battered office market.

While it’s true that real estate is generally one of the most reliable markets for investment, it’s also a fact that the industry runs on cycles. The COVID-19 pandemic accelerated and even upended many of those cycles. Even now, nearly two years after it took hold in the United States, the pandemic continues to have a see-saw effect on markets.

Fannie Mae forecasted that concessions will decline throughout 2022, returning to more normalized levels by the end of the year.

The most recent price data we have is from November when two of the most-watched inflation measures — the consumer price index and the personal consumption expenditure index — each climbed to a 39-year high.