Apartment Vacancy Rates Fall As Homeownership Drops to Lowest Level in 20 years

The U.S. Census Bureau reports that the Portland/Vancouver /Beaverton vacancy rate fell from 4.6 percent in the fourth quarter of 2013 to 4.0 percent in the first quarter of 2014.

The Portland metro area tied with Springfield, MA for the 8th lowest vacancy rates among the top 75 U.S. Metropolitan Statistical Areas (MSAs).

Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA ranked #5 with at 3.5 percent, down 0.5 percent from the prior quarter.





The 16 MSA's with the lowest vacancy rates:

• Allentown-Bethlehem-Easton, PA-NJ - 2.1%
• Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura, CA – 2.2%
• San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA – 2.4%
• Akron, OH 3-1%
• Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA – 3.5%
• Albany-Schenectady-Troy, NY – 3.7%
• Fresno, CA – 3.8%
• Portland-Vancouver-Beaverton, OR-WA – 4.0% (tie)
• Springfield, MA – 4.0%  (tie)
• Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk, CT – 4.1%
• Omaha-Council Bluffs, NE-IA – 4.4%
• San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont, CA – 4.5%
• Denver-Aurora, CO – 4.8% (tie)
• Grand Rapids, Wyoming, MI – 4.8% (tie)
• Honolulu, HI – 4.8% (tie)
• Poughkeepsie-Newburgh-Middletown, NJ – 4.8% (tie)
  

The MSA's with the five highest vacancy rates:

• Richmond, VA - 16.8%
• Orlando, FL - 16.6%
• Salt Lake City, UT - 15.2
• Tulsa, OK - 14.2%
• El Paso, TX - 13.6%

The average national rental vacancy rate for Q1 2014 was 8.3% and was 0.3% lower than a year earlier. The rental vacancy rate has been fallen consistently since 2009. It is hovering around its lowest level since Q1 2001. Its high water mark was 11.1% in 2009.


Homeownership rates fell to 64.8%, the lowest level in 20 years.


U.S. Census Media Release.