The decrease led to an overall drop of 19.95% for apartment, single-family home and condos and townhome permits, stated the report. There were a total of 22,476 permits pulled last year, compared with 28,074 in 2001.
Jeff Hawks, principal of Apartment Realty Advisors, says the drop in apartment activity was expected and good news. Many communities, he notes, were initially planned five or more years ago, when there was a shortage of units on the market. Also, in an interesting twist, the lack of snow and warm weather last year contributed to a longer building season than expected, Hawks says.
In addition, he adds, the good weather probably added 1,500 units to the supply last year, which normally would have come on line this year. "Most people think this will be the last year of any significant building," Hawks tells GlobeSt.com. "After this year, the pipeline will pretty much stop. That will allow the market to reach equilibrium."
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