Equity Residential shareholders approved the merger of equals with AvalonBay Communities at a special meeting on August 12, 2026. The transaction involves issuing approximately 336 million shares to AvalonBay stockholders, representing a conversion ratio of 2.793 Equity Residential common shares for each AvalonBay share. Shareholder approval was secured with over 99% of votes cast in favor, constituting roughly 90% of outstanding shares. The combined entity will be renamed Vivmark Residential and trade under the ticker symbol VMRK on the New York Stock Exchange starting August 18, 2026. The merger is expected to close on August 17, 2026, subject to customary closing conditions. Equity Residential owns and manages 312 rental properties consisting of 85,520 apartment units across major U.S. metro areas.

Equity Residential filed a supplemental disclosure to its joint proxy statement regarding the proposed all-stock merger with AvalonBay Communities, Inc., which will result in a combined entity named Vivmark Residential. The filing addresses shareholder litigation alleging disclosure deficiencies by voluntarily supplementing financial analyses provided by Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs. These updates include revised comparable trading multiples, discount rates, terminal capitalization rates, and illustrative present value ranges for both companies on standalone and pro forma bases. Equity Residential operates in the multifamily real estate sector.

Equity Residential reported Q2 2026 results, including a 2.0% increase in FFO per share to $1.00 and a 3.0% increase in Normalized FFO per share to $1.02. The company raised its full-year 2026 same store revenue and NOI guidance, though it withdrew its EPS, FFO, and Normalized FFO guidance due to the pending merger with AvalonBay Communities, Inc. Equity Residential is a real estate investment trust that owns and manages rental properties in major coastal markets.

Equity Residential and AvalonBay Communities have entered into an all-stock merger-of-equals agreement, with AvalonBay shareholders to receive 2.793 Equity Residential shares for each share of AvalonBay common stock. The transaction includes termination fees of approximately $1.005 billion for Equity Residential and $1.070 billion for AvalonBay, supported by a $2 billion bridge loan commitment.