After a four years of steady growth, apartment rental rates have cooled. The Zillow Rent Index was $1,548 as of July, on par with rental prices over the last 12 months.
A surge of multifamily construction activity has lifted the nation’s vacancy rate for the last five quarters. The rate now sits at 7.3 percent.
The increasing rate of starts of multifamily structures (especially the spike in 2015) will lead to continued new rental supply over the short term. This means the trend of leveling vacancy rates and slower rent appreciation should continue.
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