The apartment-vacancy rate in metro Denver increased to 6.5 percent during the third quarter, up from 5.3 percent during the same period last year, according to a survey released Tuesday.
The rate is up from 6.2 percent from the second quarter and is the highest reported in six quarters, according to the report released by the Apartment Association of Metro Denver and the Colorado Department of Local Affairs’ Division of Housing.
“The apartment business succeeds when the economy succeeds,” said Mark Williams, executive vice president of the Apartment Association. “When the economy slows, apartments slow. Job growth drives apartment growth.”
Families losing their homes to foreclosure are not likely to rent apartments, said Gordon Von Stroh, a professor of management at the University of Denver. They’re more likely to rent a single-family home.
“Once somebody leaves an apartment, they generally don’t go back,” he said.
Average rents hit a new high of $892.22 during the third quarter, increasing $33 since the same time last year. Although rents have been increasing, rental losses from discounts and concessions also have been increasing since the third quarter of last year.
Margaret Jackson: 303-954-1473 or mjackson@denverpost.com
