Apartment occupancy appeared to be improving in many markets from their local low point to close 2024.
Among the nation’s largest 50 metro areas, half saw occupancy increases between 30 basis points and 100 bps last year, according to data from RealPage Market Analytics. These markets were generally within reach of the national average improvement of 60 bps in 2024.
Six markets, including New York, Boston and Orange County, had occupancy improve slightly, by up to 20 bps compared with the previous year. These were exclusively coastal markets, the firm said.
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Occupancy increased by at least 100 bps in 15 markets. Notably among them was Las Vegas, which had a 200 bps occupancy increase last year. Greensboro, Indianapolis and Jacksonville were among the most improved markets, all of which saw at least 150 bps occupancy improvement.
Rent growth continued to decelerate in high-supply markets such as Austin, Dallas, Phoenix and Raleigh/Durham. These markets showed improvement in occupancy ranging between 30 bps and 100 bps. RealPage said rent growth may remain sluggish in those markets during the company year, but improved occupancy rates indicate they may be turning a corner.
Only four markets saw occupancy decrease in 2024 – Fort Worth, Memphis, Milwaukee and Minneapolis. Occupancy contraction in those markets was limited, however, and none of the markets lost more than 20 bps during the past 12 months, the report said.
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Kristen Smithberg
Kristen Smithberg is a Colorado-based freelance writer who covers commercial real estate, insurance, benefits and retirement topics for BenefitsPRO and other industry publications.
