National apartment vacancies dropping, San Diego’s are rising

The national and the local apartment vacancy rates, far apart in recent years, are much closer now.

Reis, Inc. (AMEX: WRP) a New York-based research firm, said the nation’s average apartment vacancy was 5.8 percent as of the end of the second quarter, down from 6 percent during the first three months of 2007 –reportedly the highest level in seven quarters.

The national survey covered about 9.3 million apartments in 79 metropolitan markets.

For San Diego County, in its bi-annual survey, MarketPointe Realty Advisors reported in March that San Diego County had about a 4.54 percent vacancy rate.

Although this was the highest level in a decade, the industry considers anything around 5 percent to be an apartment market in equilibrium. Read more » »