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LEASING
WHIPLASH! TECHNIQUES FOR A
STRENGTHENING MARKET By Les Shaver, for the National Apartment Association
On a national level at least, the numbers say the apartment market took off over the summer. Just look at the July figures from RealPage: During the month, rents grew 8.3% year-over-year across the country—the most significant
jump since the booming 2000-2001 era. At the same time, occupancy tightened to 96.9%—also the highest seen since the 2000-2001 era.
While performance in individual markets and product types varies, national fundamentals are predicted to remain robust in 2022 and even 2023. RealPage projects 15 markets to post rent growth of more than 10% during the next two years, and many other markets should see rent increases in the high single digits.
On the ground, many apartment operators are experiencing these increases across their portfolios. “You’re hearing a lot of noise about market rent increases and how much they’re going up,” says Cindy Clare, Chief Operating Officer for Bell Partners. “Keep in mind that some of that is a recovery from the drops from last year. But some of it is absolutely true market growth.” Regardless of whether the rental market is just recovering from rent decreases in 2020 and early 2021, today’s leasing agents are now dealing with a market that has flipped from just 16 to 18 months ago. They’ve gone from trying to keep heads in beds to pushing rents while still working around eviction issues (which could be inflating occupancies). Fortunately, many of the technologies deployed during the pandemic should help them continue to lease apartments more effectively regardless of the economic climate.
APARTMENT MANAGEMENT MAGAZINE - JANUARY 2022 CS-23