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Rents Flat, Vacancies Up in Hampton Roads (Va.) Apartments
Digested From "Vacancies Up, Rents Flat in Hampton Roads Apartments"
Hampton Roads Daily Press (VA) (03/28/09) by Veronica Chufo

In Virginia, the Hampton Roads apartment sector is currently dealing with its highest vacancy rate in nearly a decade. Indeed, the region's vacancy rate was 6.9 percent as of late last year--the highest the region has seen since at least 2000. At the same time, the average apartment rent rose only 1 percent between 2007 and 2008--a vast change from the yearly growth of between 4.6 percent and 7.5 percent this market has seen since 2000. On the bright side, Hampton Roads' apartment occupancy rate continues to outperform other Southeastern cities. Vacancies are lowest in Chesapeake (5.2 percent) and Norfolk (5.3 percent), confirms the latest Real Data study. Looking ahead, nearly 3,700 more apartments are proposed or under construction, the majority of which will be built in Chesapeake, Norfolk and Hampton. Meanwhile, the majority of the job growth that is projected to occur is in Newport News, which means that this market is the next likely candidate for future apartment development. Dan W. Johnson, senior vice president of CB Richard Ellis in Norfolk, declares, "It is a good time to rent. . . . The [residents] have been hit with sharp, sharp rent increases every year for several years. Now there's pretty much a good opportunity to hold your rent where it is and kind of know where you're going to be for while."
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