U.S. Census Rental Vacancy Rates for Q4 2019: Portland ranks 6th Lowest, Seattle Ties For 21st

Of the nation's top 75 metro markets, greater Portland has the nation's 6th lowest rental vacancy rate while the Seattle metro area ties for 21st Lowest with Las Vegas.

The U.S. Census Bureau reported that the fourth-quarter 2019 rental vacancy rate for the Portland/ Vancouver/ Hillsboro metro area was 3.2%, a decrease of 1.5% from the previous quarter and an increase from 2.5% one year earlier.

Seattle/Tacoma/Bellevue's metro area vacancy rate was listed at 5.6%, up 0.5% from a year earlier and up 1% from the prior quarter.

The nation's lowest rental vacancy rates, by metro area: 

1. Worcester, MA - 0.4%
2. Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk, CT 2.5%
3. Sacramento-Roseville-Arden-Arcade, CA - 2.7%
4. Rochester, NY - 3.0%
5. Minneapolis-St Paul - Bloomington, MN-WI - 3.1%
6. [Tie] Columbus, OH and Portland-Vancouver-Hillsboro, OR (TIE) - 3.2%
7. [Tie] Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario, CA and San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA - 3.3%
8. [Tie] Hartford-West & East Hartford, CT and Salt Lake City, UT - 3.6%
9. [Tie] Oklahoma City, OK and San Diego-Carlsbad, CA - 3.8%
10. Fresno, CA - 3.9%

Average National Rental Vacancy Rate
The average national rental vacancy rate for Q4 2019 was 6.4 percent for multifamily dwellings of five or more units -- not statistically changed from 6.6% one year earlier, despite continuous delivery of multifamily units throughout the national market.

Year-over-year vacancy rates in the Western U.S. remained statistically unchanged.

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U.S. Homeownership Rate Falls
After falling to a 26-year low in 2016, the homeownership rate has rebounded and has increased slightly over the past year to 65.1%. Homeownership in the West has remained flat at about 60% from the end of 2018 to 2019.

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