Empty Apartment Buildings?
It was recently reported that apartment vacancies have hit their highest point in 23 years. The rate has soared to 7.8%, and it is expected to keep climbing during the fall and winter. This is causing apartment buildings to lower their rent, and even become more lenient in order to keep their tenants. Many landlords are even becoming more involved in the upkeep of each individual property going as far as cleaning and painting the apartments before tenants move in. The renters seem to be gaining the power. This is all a reflection of our current employment market. With the majority of apartment renters being in their 20s and early 30s, when something goes financially wrong, they are more likely to have the ability to stay with family or friends, which is not good for apartment leases. Most likely, when job losses stop, leasing will begin to rise again. While apartment vacancies rise, the recent $8,000 tax credit offered to first-time homebuyers has helped to show signs of stabilization in the housing sales market. It seems as though all good news comes with bad news these days, but soon enough, if we all hang in there, everything will balance out. Stabilization is in the future.