Apartment Vacancies Decline Nationwide

By PlanetLaundry staff | May 17, 2011

Across the country, there’s good news for most self-service laundry owners: apartments are filling up. And, as a result, landlords are boosting rents as more renters – feeling better about the economy and their jobs – are moving out of their parents' home or ditching their roommates. Rental activity recorded its best start to the year since 1999, according to real estate tracker Reis, Inc.

The vacancy rate dropped to levels not seen since mid-2008, and rents have increased for the past five quarters to $991 per month. Concessions also are sliding, as apartment owners are back to offering typical inducements like one month free. A year ago, new tenants received three to four months rent-free to ink a lease.

Analysts expect apartment vacancies to shrink and rents to rise all the way through 2013, as the economy recharges and the labor market improves.

The cities where demand for apartments is the highest are on the coasts, including New York, Washington, D.C., Boston, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Seattle, and San Jose, Calif.