Greater Sacramento Leads U.S. in Apartment Occupancy
Apartment occupancy in the Sacramento region is on the rise and has been for some time now. The Greater Sacramento Area actually leads the nation in apartment occupancy, by one company’s estimate. RPM Select Sacramento is making sure to stay on top of the Sacramento apartment management industry, and we have the scoop for you below.
The second quarter of 2014 saw apartment occupancy rise to 96.1 percent, a 16-point improvement over the same quarter one year earlier. It was the greatest increase nationally seen by the apartment data research firm, Axiometrics.
This is great news for multi-family investors and Sacramento apartment management companies.
According to Jay Denton, Axiometrics’ vice president of research “There’s no obvious reason for the improvement. Job growth, and supply of new units, is virtually the same now as it was in 2013 and 2012. Rather, those metrics continuing to improve over the last two years has led to a tipping point where available apartments and similar rental spaces are shrinking fast.” Denton goes on to say “Rates of 96 percent or above in California is considered a sign of virtual full occupancy.”
It’s not surprising to find that rents are on the rise as well. The second quarter of 2014 saw a year-over-year increase of 6.5 percent, fifth strongest nationally among the 50 biggest metropolitan regions.
“It just means owners can maximize revenues, and you’ll see those owners raising rates,” Denton says.
According to Denton 2015 might just be more of the same, or even better. While job growth is expected to continue to grow in the region, even a developer starting to build a new apartment project right now wouldn’t be able to introduce it to the market for at least another year or 18 months. “Rent growth that’s expected on this pace is 5 to 6 percent, and it could be even stronger,” he said. “Simply because there’s not much new in the way of supply anytime soon.”
Statistics within the region:
Citrus Heights saw the greatest year-over-year gain in rents, 14.4 percent, going from a median of $869 a month to $995.
Downtown Sacramento, which includes the popular midtown neighborhood, saw an 11.3 percent gain in occupancy to 92.3 percent.
The Arden-Arcade area, at 96.8 percent, has the highest overall occupancy rate among submarkets.
The increase in rents and apartment occupancy in the Sacramento region has been a huge boom for investors. If you have ever been interested in investing your money into apartment buildings now seems to be the time. Real Property Management Select is the perfect Sacramento apartment management company to watch over your property. RPM Select is the obvious choice because we will help you get the greatest return on your investment.