DALLAS, TX--(Marketwired - February 17, 2015) - The national apartment market enjoyed its strongest January of the post-recession period last month, recording annual effective rent growth of 4.9% and occupancy of 94.6%, according to data from Axiometrics, the leader in apartment market research and analysis.
The January 2015 rent growth rate was a 9-basis-points (bps) decrease from the 5.0% recorded in December 2014, but was still the second highest level since the 5.0% of August 2011. That slight decrease, however, broke a 10-month streak in which the annual effective rent growth level increased from the previous month.
"We expected rent growth to moderate in 2015 after the spectacular growth of 2014," Axiometrics Vice President of Research Stephanie McCleskey said. "However, January's numbers reflect an apartment market that is continuing the strength of 2014."
January 2015's rent growth was the strongest of any January since Axiometrics started reporting the metric monthly in April 2009 -- and represented a 202-bps increase from January 2014. Axiometrics collects the data by calling every property in its database every month. The rundown:
- January 2015: 4.9%.
- January 2014: 2.9%.
- January 2013: 3.6%.
- January 2012: 4.1%.
- January 2011: 4.5%.
- January 2010: -4.1%.
Occupancy Remains Steady
Occupancy remained at 94.6% in January 2015. As was the case with effective rent growth, last month's occupancy rate was the highest of any January since Axiometrics started recording the metric monthly in April 2008.
The January 2015 rate was a 48-bps increase from the 94.1% of January 2014. The rate was the same in January 2013; 93.4% in January 2012; 93.1% in January 2011; and 91.6% in January 2010.
The national occupancy rate has exceeded 94% for 34 straight months.
California still in the lead
The top four markets for annual effective rent growth in January 2015 were the same as the previous month's. Oakland, CA, remained atop Axiometrics' top 50 market list with rent growth of 14.3%. Oakland also had the highest occupancy (96.6%) and revenue growth (14.8%), which is effective rent growth plus occupancy change.
"Desirable jobs are being created in the Bay Area by successful entrepreneurs who are tapping into the ever-growing tech industry," McCleskey said. "That's great news for landlords. Oakland remains No. 1 because it is a more affordable alternative to San Jose and San Francisco, and new supply remains at a minimum there."
Nashville was the biggest mover on the chart, rising from 17th to 13th as annual effective rent growth surged from 5.8% to 6.4%. Tampa-St. Petersburg (5.3% effective rent growth) and Orlando (5.9%) are new on the top 17 list, which now contains four Florida MSAs. Florida did lose one from the chart, as Miami, along with Las Vegas, dropped off.
The list contains five California MSAs, four of which are in the top 10 (Oakland, San Francisco, San Jose and Sacramento). San Francisco and San Jose were right behind Bay Area neighbor Oakland in occupancy, at 96.3% and 96.1%, respectively. The three MSAs stayed at the top in revenue growth, though Denver (12.3% revenue growth) squeezed between San Francisco (13.3%) and San Jose (11.2%) in third place.
| Annual Effective Rent Growth | Occupancy Rate | Revenue Growth | ||||||
| Rank | MSA | Jan-14 | Jan-15 | Jan-14 | Jan-15 | Jan-14 | Jan-15 | |
| 1 | Oakland, CA | 8.3% | 14.3% | 96.2% | 96.6% | 8.3% | 14.8% | |
| 2 | San Francisco, CA | 6.5% | 12.5% | 95.5% | 96.3% | 7.1% | 13.3% | |
| 3 | Denver, CO | 7.1% | 11.7% | 95.1% | 95.6% | 7.4% | 12.3% | |
| 4 | San Jose, CA | 8.8% | 10.9% | 95.9% | 96.1% | 8.8% | 11.2% | |
| 5 | West Palm Beach, FL | 3.8% | 8.8% | 95.5% | 95.8% | 4.8% | 9.1% | |
| 6 | Sacramento, CA | 5.0% | 8.3% | 95.2% | 95.5% | 6.6% | 8.7% | |
| 7 | Atlanta, GA | 5.2% | 8.0% | 93.2% | 93.8% | 6.3% | 8.7% | |
| 8 | Portland, OR | 8.4% | 7.5% | 95.7% | 95.9% | 9.2% | 7.8% | |
| 9 | Fort Lauderdale, FL | 3.6% | 7.1% | 94.9% | 95.4% | 4.1% | 7.6% | |
| 10 | Seattle, WA | 5.8% | 6.9% | 95.2% | 95.4% | 5.8% | 7.1% | |
| 11 | Phoenix, AZ | 3.5% | 6.5% | 93.4% | 94.7% | 4.0% | 7.8% | |
| 12 | Fort Worth, TX | 3.5% | 6.4% | 94.0% | 95.0% | 3.5% | 7.4% | |
| 13 | Nashville, TN | 4.6% | 6.4% | 95.6% | 95.4% | 4.9% | 6.2% | |
| 14 | Charleston, SC | 3.2% | 6.4% | 93.4% | 94.4% | 4.8% | 7.4% | |
| 15 | Orlando, FL | 3.8% | 5.9% | 94.0% | 95.2% | 3.7% | 7.2% | |
| 16 | Los Angeles, CA | 3.7% | 5.4% | 95.5% | 95.7% | 3.8% | 5.6% | |
| 17 | Tampa, FL | 2.1% | 5.3% | 94.0% | 94.9% | 2.4% | 6.3% | |
| National | 2.9% | 4.9% | 94.2% | 94.6% | 3.0% | 5.4% | ||
| Selected Other Markets | ||||||||
| 1 | Odessa, TX | 9.0% | 18.4% | 98.0% | 96.7% | 9.0% | 17.1% | |
| 7 | North Port, FL | 7.9% | 11.3% | 96.4% | 96.7% | 8.3% | 11.6% | |
| 11 | Salinas, CA | 2.2% | 9.2% | 93.8% | 97.7% | 4.5% | 13.4% | |
| 15 | Honolulu, HI | -5.4% | 8.1% | 92.3% | 94.4% | -9.1% | 10.4% | |
| 18 | Greenville, SC | 0.3% | 7.2% | 93.7% | 94.9% | -0.2% | 8.6% | |
| *Rank is based on annual effective rent growth in January 2015 for Axiometrics Top 50 Markets. Selected other markets are based on Axiometrics Top 121 Markets. Axio tracks properties in more than 450 MSAs throughout the country. | ||||||||
| Source: Axiometrics Inc. | ||||||||
About Axiometrics
Axiometrics improves property and portfolio performance for apartment investments. Confident investment decisions begin with reliable, timely information. No one has more accurate, detailed, and up-to-date research on the apartment and student housing markets. To learn more, visit www.axiometrics.com, follow @Axiometrics or on LinkedIn, or call 214-953-2242.
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Contact Information:
Contact:
Ross Coulter
214-394-5538
ross@mpdventures.com
