Mountain West Real Estate Investment Market Report: September 2020
Co-Living: What Is It and Will It Survive COVID-19?
A housing option that was once utilized primarily by college students is becoming more popular among young professionals across the globe. With rent prices rocketing in many primary-market cities like New York, San Francisco, Seattle, Washington D.C., and Chicago, urban life is out of reach for many, unless they pool their living resources in a co-living situation. This trend can be a good opportunity for investors as well as a great way for young people to live in urban centers. But will it survive the pandemic?
Will Co-Living Survive COVID-19?Market Activity
According to the Denver Metro Area Apartment Vacancy and Rent Survey, average rent is now $1,506 per month, down $30.0 from a year ago. Vacancy has dropped 0.8 percent to 5.1 percent in the second quarter. Property managers have reported that rent collections remain strong. Staying within +/- 2 percent compared to the same month in 2019, with more tenants on payment plans. Most tenants are staying and renewing their leases.
Market Activity
According to The Salt Lake Tribune, the power of Utah’s low unemployment rate should not be underestimated. Almost six months into the pandemic, Utah’s rate held near 4.5 percent – which is almost half the national rate of 9.2 percent. The region has set an all-time high for home sales in a single month in July. With healthier outdoor living and recreation space compared to large cities, Summit and Wasatch counties are seeing increased home sales as never before.
Market Activity
In the first eight months of 2020, Dallas only had 12,167 units of the metro area’s total stock delivered. Compared to the city’s most abundant years in deliveries, there were 27,882 units delivered in 2018 and 26,550 in 2019. Yardi Matrix estimates that the metro area’s inventory will expand by more than 19,000 units by the end of 2020. In August, Dallas had 51,482 units under construction, and since the pandemic began, 3,384 units entered the construction phase in North Dallas.
