AUSTIN, Texas — Demand for apartments in Austin is causing rent to rise to sky-high levels.
Nearly 21,000 new apartment renters moved to the Austin area, while only 13,000 new apartments were completed, according to a report from KVUE's media partners with the Austin American-Statesman. Charles Heimsath, president of Austin-based Capitol Market Research, told the Statesman that a net of 19,000 units were leased (move-ins and move-outs). Heimsath said that is twice as many as the market has ever absorbed before.
"I would say 2021 was a most extraordinary year for the apartment market — the most extraordinary I've ever seen," Heimsath told the Statesman.
The Statesman reported that this high demand drove monthly rates up by an average of 15% – or about $200 per month – in 2021. At the end of December 2021, the average rent across all apartment sizes in the region was approximately $1,500 per month, compared to $1,300 the year before.
Heimsath told the Statesman – according to his research – the apartment occupancy rate across Central Texas averaged 94% at the end of 2021, the highest it has been since 2015. He reported that the occupancy rate was 91% in December of 2020.
For a look at the full Statesman report, click here.
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