Top Tips for Property Owners on Working with Portland Police

If you're a Portland metro area property owner who has sometimes wondered how to best interact with local police, this video provides some important tips, no matter what city you live in.

 

See all of HFO's Apartment Videos on HFO-TV for Multifamily Investors in Oregon and Washington

Over 15,000 Multifamily Units Under Construction, Planned or Proposed in Portland Metro

What's going on? It has been all over the news! Portland has one of the tightest rental markets in the nation. The past few years, limited construction took place in the Portland Metro area and the apartment market and renters are feeling the effects. Even with conservative adjustments by MMHA, the vacancy rate is expected to remain below 5.0% in 2012 and rents are trending upward. As a result, the anticipated increase in apartment construction is well underway.

What's going up? Approximately 3,093 market rate apartments in 25 different complexes are currently leasing up or under construction with leasing beginning in Q3 and Q4 of 2012 and into 2013. The largest number of units under construction are located in the suburban westside markets followed by the close-in Portland submarket on both east and west sides. A total 538 income restricted units in six different complexes are in development. The majority of the income restricted units are located in the South Waterfront. Reach Community Development is building Grays Landing, a 209-unit complex under construction on Block 49 with an expected completion date in the fourth quarter of 2012. The remaining income restricted units are found in North Portland, Vancouver and Close-in Portland.

What's coming up? Another 6,548 market rate units are planned for 2013 and beyond; permits have been pulled or properties are undergoing development review for 52 different properties. Similar to the apartments currently under construction, the majority of development is taking place in the suburban westside submarkets followed by the close-in, urban east and westside submarkets. An additional 512 planned units are income-restricted. These complexes are smaller with an average size of 51 units among 10 different complexes.

Announced prospective units include 4,180 units in 26 new apartment communities and 164 additional low-income units.

What's it mean? Not all of the above-referenced apartment projects will likely be built. Still, new construction is clearly on the uptick in the Portland/Vancouver metro apartment market and it looks like this is a trend we can expect to continue. The end result for multifamily owners is increased competition for tenants as newer properties are added to existing inventory.

Resources for this report include: Daily Journal of Commerce, Portland Business Journal, Oregonlive.com, City Permit Offices and HFO Research.

Census Reports Portland/Vancouver Multifamily Vacancy at 4.5%

The U.S. Census Bureau reported today the Portland/Vancouver/Beaverton vacancy rate rose from 4.2 percent in Q2 2012 to 4.5 percent in the third quarter, making it 9th lowest vacancy rates among the top 75 U.S. Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs). This estimate is slightly above the 3.6 percent vacancy rate reported by the Metro Multifamily Housing Association in its Fall, 2012 survey.

Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA ranked #24 with a Q3 2012 vacancy estimate of 7.3 percent, up 4.1 percent from the prior quarter.

The nation's 10 lowest vacancy rates were as follows:

• Poughkeepsie-Newburgh-Middletown, NJ - 1.0%
• Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura, CA - 2.1%
• San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA -2.5%
• Syracuse, NY - 2.7%
• Sacramento-Arden-Arcade-Roseville, CA - 3.4%
• Alburquerque, NM - 3.8% (Tie)
• Toledo, OH - 3.8% (Tie)
• Worcester, MA - 3.9%
• Columbia, SC - 4.1%
• Portland-Vancouver-Beaverton, OR-WA - 4.5%
• Denver-Aurora, CO - 4.6%

The MSA's with the five highest vacancy rates were as follows:

• Tucson, AZ - 15.3%
• Detroit-Warren-Livonia, MI- 15.5%
• Orlando, FL - 15.7%
• Richmond, VA - 20.7%
• Dayton, OH - 25.7%

Average national vacancy rates in the third quarter 2012 were 8.6 percent for rental housing and 1.9 percent for homeowner housing, the Department of Commerce’s Census Bureau announced today. The rental vacancy rate of 8.6 percent was 1.2 percentage points lower than the rate recorded in the third quarter 2011 (+/-0.4 percentage points) and approximately the same as the rate last quarter (+/-0.4)*.  The homeowner vacancy rate of 1.9 percent was 0.5 percentage points lower than Q3 2011 (+/-0.2) and 0.2 percentage points lower (+/-0.1) than the rate last quarter (2.1 percent).
Click to see the data for all Metro Areas

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The 18-car parking garage by day that becomes 8 apartments at night!

Multifamily Executive Magazine reports on this new concept: a daytime parking garage that becomes nighttime apartments.  Thoughts? Click to see the design.

Click here to see HFO's current multifamily listings in Oregon and SW Washington.

Portland and Seattle Top Cities for Multifamily Rent Growth

 Rental markets in the Pacific Northwest are among the hottest for national effective rent growth.  Real Facts reports that both Portland and Seattle were tied for seventh place in the U.S. with average rent increases of 6.2 percent. Click here to see the rankings.

Click here to see all of HFO's current multifamily properties for sale.

 

Apartment Construction Surges in Bay Area

Apartment construction is up all across the country.  Here is the latest from Portland's sister city to the south, San Francisco.

Vancouver Wins Funds To Prep 58 Acres for Industry, Jobs

The Port of Vancouver announced it has received a substantial grant to prepare 58 acres of its property for industrial development, which it hopes will lead to the creation of 500 new jobs.  Read this story in the Portland Business Journal.

Portland Apartment Rents Continue to Rise as Vacancy Falls

Elliot Njus of the Oregonian reported on news from today's Metro Multifamily Housing Association breakfast.  Click the link below for details:

http://www.oregonlive.com/front-porch/index.ssf/2012/10/portland_apartment_rents_conti.html

Portland Apartment Market: Stable Vacancies, Rents Increasing

The Metro Multifamily Housing Association reported at its bi-annual breakfast this morning the following key indicators of the Portland/Vancouver Metro Area Housing Market:

• A 3.63% vacancy rate, down from 3.7% in spring, 2012
• Rent rates increased by 3% over the prior six months, reflecting an annual rent increase of 6.2%
• Inner/Central SE and NE Portland continue to be very tight markets with vacancy factors of 2.3% and 2.6%
• The average number of days a unit stays vacant has dropped from 43 to 37 days
• Rent overall has increased to $1.03 per square foot

Salem and Eugene

• In Salem vacancies are 3.07%, up slightly from spring 2012; rents have declined
• In Eugene/Springfield, vacancies are at 3.7% and rent rates are on the rise.

Bend and Redmond

• Vacancy rates have decreased from 8.4% to under 3.9% in the past six months.

Each six months, Metro Multifamily Housing conducts a survey; the survey released today represented a survey of 869 properties with a total of 56,080 apartment units.

January 2013's New 3.8% Medicare Tax on Real Estate Income = More Incentive for Sec. 1031 Exchange

New tax provides another reason to participate in a Section 1031 Exchange after January 1, 2013.

Beginning January 1, 2013 individuals with a modified adjusted gross income of at least $200,000 ($250,000 for couples filing jointly) will face a new 3.8 percent Medicare tax. For purposes of calculating the tax investment income will include rental income. There will be certain ways to avoid the tax, such as qualifying as a real estate professional and materially participating activities that generate the income. 

Read more in this article by Jenee Hilliard, attorney with Miller Nash LLP.

Oregon Economy Rebounds After Short Slide

University of Oregon economist Tim Duy reported today that the UO Index suggests continued economic growth. The baseline scenario remains steady but relatively slow growth for the national economy, with Oregon following a similar trajectory. The possibility of either a sharp fiscal contraction in the early part of 2013 or deterioration in the global economy (or both) remains a risk to the outlook. Read more in Oregon Business Report.

U.S. Multifamily Trend: Apartment Demand Slowing But Not Stalled

CNBC reports that the multifamily real estate analysis firm REIS has new data showing that "Apartment vacancies fell by just ten basis points in the third quarter of 2012, from 4.7 percent to 4.6 percent. . . . While that is still an improvement, it is the slowest rate since the recovery began in 2010."

According to CNBC, many analysts still believe apartment demand will remain robust in the near term, relative to where it has been historically, as so many potential home buyers are shut out of the mortgage market due to damaged credit. They also point to a shift in the homeownership mentality of younger Americans, who have seen what the housing crash did to their parents and who are gravitating more and more to urban centers.

Satellite Provider Ordered to Pay Dish Removal Cost to Multifamily Owner

After spending six months negotiating with Dish Network trying to get some relief for costs to remove satellite dishes from his apartment building, an L.A. owner sued in small claims, winning $850 to cover the costs and $110 in court costs.  Click here to read the full story.


Looking for multifamily properties for sale in Oregon or SW Washington? Click here to see many of HFO's current listings; call our office for more information at 503-241-5541.

U.S. Apartment Rent Growth Levels Ease, But Remain Strong

MPF Research reports that Apartment Growth levels eased in Q3 of 2012; fundamentals remain quite healthy.