Demand for Apartments Reaches Five-Year High

Demand for rental apartments reached a five-year high this spring, according to Realtor.com.

The number of new apartment move-ins in the second quarter of 2019 increased 11% over the same period last year, according to a national report scheduled to be released Monday by real-estate analytics firm RealPage. The demand surge drove the national occupancy rate to 95.8%, compared with 95.4% at the end of the second quarter of 2018, the report said.

Monthly rental prices nationwide shot up 3% from the second quarter of 2018 to the same period this year. Many small metros saw bigger increases. Rents rose 7.4% in Wilmington, N.C., and 6.4% in Huntsville, Ala., according to the report.

Read more